Meeting the Crew and Saving the Girl
by Univerce
Summary: Dragged off, almost literally, through a gaping green... hole... and then finding herself chasing down her friend and saving a princess alongside six amazingly skilled and, frankly, hot boys, Nintai gets to play ninja natural and hero! Once you've read this, look for the sequel: Progression Through the Lost
1. Joining the Hist Club, Finding a Clue

Story 1: Meeting the Crew and Saving the Girl

This fan fiction follows the general setup from the game, but events may be mixed up, meddled, or turned serious. I am using Microsoft word, so spelling and grammar errors should be intentional if present. If you have a question about an error in the story, please check the notes at the bottom of the chapter. If the error is not marked or explained, please pm about it and I'll fix the issue. Any copyright violation to the people who developed the wonderful and amazing game is not meant, and if it occurs I AM SO VERY SORRY! I DIDN'T MEAN IT! DON'T HATE ME!

What would you do, if you have to pick a place, but not just a place, but a world? What if, no matter what you pick, you still have to fight for your life? Well, meet Nintai. She not only has to pick, but she has to earn the right to, and the bad guys aren't going to make it easy.

Chapter One: Joining the History Club and Finding a Clue

Little Nintai, a child of only nine years old, was sent running from her home when her drunken father started on another raging rant of his own invention. It's not so much that he needs to drink, but it makes the man feel better when he has something to take away the pain of being fired, dumped, and laughed at all at once.

To start with, he lost his job for something he believed to be stupid; another, more qualified guy showed up and, although he didn't have as much experience in the field, replaced him. Then, his girlfriend, who he'd hoped would replace his late wife and become his daughter's new mother, left him because of his lost job. Apparently, she was merely hoping to find a quick and easy payday.

And after all of this, he found himself at a bar, drinking himself into a deeper chasm of misery while listening to his former coworkers empathize with his misfortune. The one thing he despised the absolute most was when people tried to understand a feeling without having ever felt it before themselves. In short, he absolutely despised empathy.

All of this led to Nintai's running away from her home and off into the city nightscape at just before midnight.

Now then, I'm not going to go over how her father managed to recover, or even why she's still not living with her recovered father. That stuff is always revealed later on anyways, and doing so now would be too easy and make the current story kind of pointless. So let's skip to the fun part, shall we?

Little Nintai has grown up; age 17, not 'well-developed' but by no means under-developed either. Her skin isn't the healthiest looking, but it heals quickly, easily, and almost always without a scar, no matter how much she messes with an injury. Her eyes, a deep sapphire, seem to pierce into the heart. Her hair is cut short, boy short in fact, and takes the color of lotus blossoms naturally. Kind of strange, I know, but let's be honest, that's what keeps people reading.

Not only that, but she's in high school, too. Her dad, the recovered alcoholic, pays for it with ease now, using the money made from his high-paying job, which I'm ignoring for now. With uniform in hand, and the transfer papers from her last school, which kicked her out when she was framed by a not too happy clique, filled out and turned in last week, she now looks toward her future at the gates to her new school.

With a grim expression and a book bag filled with air, Nintai steps into the school grounds, late on her first day by about half an hour. She really didn't want to get up today.

And lacking the happiness of seeing her friends' faces at the school doors, gladly skipping first period just to see their amazingly independent pal walking into the grounds with confidence, only made the morning worse.

'Oh, it's okay, Nintai. You'll make plenty of new friends with your smile and maybe you could dye your hair before you go off! It'll cause less of an uproar and you'll slip into a group with ease,' said Lee as Nintai returned her books to the library last week.

She'd followed Nintai after the teacher had dragged her out of class to see the school principal. Standing next to the library desk, the girl had asked what happened in the teacher's offices and Nintai had been more than happy to vent about the situation. Anger issues usually aren't hereditary, but Nintai is almost certain she had to get hers from somewhere. And she doesn't remember her mother ever shouting, kicking, screaming, or drinking herself into an abyss.

Lee had allowed her friend to release her stress, but when she'd finished venting, Lee had brought up the usual pep talk given to any underage person when they have to move. New friends, new places, new anything, really, and none of it is scary or foreboding. But is Nintai to honestly trust her friend's words?

In the girl's experience, her friends tend to be wise beyond their years. Currently, as she stands in front of a door, looking up to stare at the plate reading 'Teacher's Office,' she hopes that at least a little of that wisdom has rubbed off onto her and her reckless personality.

Refocusing herself, Nintai reaches for the door handle and pulls it open. Another half-hour later, she's standing in a science room, staring back at 23 nameless faces. It's obvious that half the class is assessing her, another quarter has already dismissed her from their attention and is staring through her into space, and that final quarter are like the brown-haired girl in the back.

Attentive, and with a smile on her face, she watches Nintai as she introduces herself and says, before the teacher can allow anyone to ask any question, that 'yes, her hair is naturally that color and yes her eyes are always that shade of blue.' With no real questions to answer before break, the teacher sits her next to a black-haired boy in the back of the room and finishes out the lesson.

The last thing the teacher says is that science club members needs to stay behind for a quick update on their midterm trip and its effect on their tests.

As such, Nintai finishes her first day, and pretty much her first week, with several introductions, no friends, and a tendency to ignore even the teachers as the time passes. Her depression was overwhelming, and the only thing she looks forward to is the weekends as time slowly goes by. After another two weeks, midterm tests are given and she passes with flying colors. The only thing left before holiday break is to send the scores to her dad, which she'd promised to do every time she took a test.

The school doesn't send mail out past the district, so she has to re-send them in a new envelope, complete with scores, comments, and the usual 'congratulations' note sent with everything she does well on. This is done promptly and without a second thought; she may not have forgiven her father for his action eight years ago, but that doesn't mean she stopped loving him. He's her father after all, and he always will be, no matter what.

The next semester, she finally makes a friend. After several attempts to engage the depressed girl, Sayori, a rather shy girl with a high moral compass, manages to slip past Nintai's defenses. With a single friend made, others immediately show themselves in the form of the history club. Sayori, already a member, has asked Nintai along for one meeting, and she instantly took a liking to the attention the president paid to ancient lore of the local area.

What she took and instant distaste to is the president's bossy nature. It seemed to be the only flaw that Nintai found with her personality, and started her own anger therapy in order to keep herself from talking back. The idea of doing so is certainly appealing to her, but getting on the club president's bad side is never a good idea. Her last school is proof of that.

So, holding onto her anger, Nintai's personality improves, and her circle increases to include several boys and girls of all types. Of course, her development and unusual hair color makes her all the more interesting. In fact, having her as a friend soon becomes the in thing, kind of like how bright green would become the new black.

But, regardless, Nintai doesn't mind. If anything, she enjoys it. Being in control of so much around her was never really her idea of fun, but the way the students act is rather refreshing. And with them acting that way, Nintai easily distinguishes real friends from fakers.

Sayori, for one. She never thinks about how Nintai's hair color got so bright, or how it shaded to such a light purple. But she did give Nintai a lotus blossom she'd found in a pond. The flower had been floating in a fish bowl, and it is currently blooming brightly in Nintai's room on her bedside table.

Sei, the boy she had first sat next to in science class on day one, notices her hair color, but thinks of it as more of an omen of something. He's left it at that for now, but Nintai noticed shortly after befriending the boy that he is rather interested in supernatural phenomena. He even believes in magic, but can only perform it using the simple tricks found in magic starter kits. And everyone on the planet should know those tricks aren't real.

The president, or course, is sort of her friend, but Nintai can only handle her bossiness for so long before she needs to make an excuse to escape. And the girls never hang out together outside of school.

The there's Jinnai and Rin. The fraternal twins are practically joined at the hip, but their love for pranks and tricks is well known all over the school, and the majority of the school can't avoid the traps set up every so often. Nintai is their primary target, naturally, since they have yet to catch her even once.

Jinnai, the boy, is the planner and can come up with some of the best traps to ever be seen. Forget buckets above the door, glue on the door handle, or simply locking the door; this kid came up with the plastic door and shoe swap.

Rin, the girl, is the bait master. She can lure even the most cautious of students into a prank or trap, assuming she's got the right timing and plan. Whether it's getting help carrying a 'heavy' box or reaching for a suspicious book, people can't help but go to her aide, regardless of the consequences.

In the end, the second semester passes with a new circle of friends and activities to make her forget any idea of depression.

Middle of the summer: Excavation Site

"Nintai! You're late!"

"Yeah, yeah. Nag me later."

Although Nintai definitely didn't want to talk back to the president, today just isn't a good day to be out in 90 degree heat, wearing her school uniform, which currently feels like it was made more for winter, and digging in sloshy mud. _Honestly, what was the president thinking?_

"Nintai!"

She recognizes the voice, and immediately turns a smile to a rushing Sayori. Before Nintai could truly enjoy the sight of her friend. The rushing girl slips up, landing hard on her rear. Holding in a laugh, Nintai rises from the wall she was working on digging out and walks over to Sayori, currently pulling something out of the mud.

"You alright, imōto?" Nintai holds out her hand to the mud covered girl, and quickly pulls her to her feet. "You're later than I am. What happened?"

Sayori, with a look of embarrassment, explains how her parents had forced her to eat a larger breakfast than usual, not to mention how they made her put on so much sunscreen that her skin currently felt like it was covered by some sort of gel. Holding back a laugh, the two moved over to where Nintai had been working and kneel down again.

However, Nintai's friend is more preoccupied with what's in her hand. Her curiosity piqued, Nintai pulled it from her grasp and held it away from her. While Sayori struggles to reach for the pendant, a green shines bounces onto the ruined castle wall. After taking a good long look at it, the two agree to hide it until after the day's trip.

Finally, after several hours of pointless labor, as no one found anything, Sayori and Nintai head out to meet with the rest of the gang at a nearby café. Although no one found anything, excluding the pendant hidden in Sayori's bag, Nintai had to admit that being near the old castle gave an oddly romantic feeling. The president had mentioned a story concerning a princess and a tragic death, but Nintai had only been here for just over a semester; she didn't know the story, and Sayori was useless since she couldn't remember it.

And asking the president to tell it was absolutely out of the question; the girl would have gone postal and raged at the entire club, officers included.

Holding onto the hope that one of the group could tell them something, the two girls enter the café and head to the table in the far corner, where Jinnai, Rin, and Sei are chatting about some random topic that Rin no doubt picked.

The five teenagers greeted each other as usual; insults with smiles and honest sarcastic compliments. After the two newcomers had ordered something to snack on and drinks to go with it, the main topic was breached.

"The tragic story of a princess," Sei says, more or less to himself.

"I remember that story," Rin speaks up while staring off dreamily. "A princess, in love with an unknown man, was killed because of feuding factions in her family." A sad expression crosses her face. The story obviously is not her favorite.

"It's alright, Rin. You don't have to tell it," Jinnai responds blandly. "The story goes that a tomboy princess got tricked into going to a castle. Once there, she was fooled by the castle's lord into thinking she was safe. Her bodyguard, who had also been fooled attempted to save her, but ended up dying as he defended the escape route. The girl then reached the end of that route and found herself in a trap where the castle lord killed her.

"The story says that the castle lord believed the girl to be unfit to lead her people and tried to place some other guy in her spot once she was gone. It don't remember what happened past that point. I think that was always when I fell asleep."

"A bit of a crude telling, but completely correct," chimes Sei. "I'd love to be able to go back in time and see if that's story's real or fake, but alas, we still lack the ability to time travel."

Nintai rolls her eyes at that and turns to Sayori. "Next topic, then. Sayori, the pendant, please."

With a smile on her face, Sayori reaches into her bag and pulls it out for the table of friends to see. Sei is completely captivated by it, Jinnai is staring blankly, and Rin is still staring off dreamily, probably fantasizing about another ending to the story, with her as the princess. Nintai and Sayori tell how it was in the mud when Sayori slipped and fell and about the green shine it had given off, regardless of the dirt and mud that covered it.

The pendant gleams brightly, cleaned off, for the most part, but still holding onto some mud in the crevices of the etchings. The green stone set into the sliver seems so deep, it could swallow all of them if they weren't careful. After passing the necklace around the group several times, everyone shares their theories.

Sei's idea was that the pendant had some sort of ability or was connected to a castle event. A pretty good theory, but Nintai dismissed it completely.

"Why on earth would someone just leave this lying in the grass at a festival or competition, huh? It's was too beautiful, not to mention that it was probably really expensive. And why would a castle servant have something like this? If they'd stolen it, another servant would've noticed it missing, at least, and they wouldn't be able to sell it without rousing some form of suspicion."

Sei concedes the argument, but still believes that it had to do with an event of some sort. He completely ignores the story of the princess.

Jinnai's theory was that some rich guy nowadays had bought the pendant for a girlfriend and tossed it into the lake when she dumped him.

"Oddly specific, Jinnai. Is that a generalized theory, or is that what you would have done?"

Nintai's stare made him look away uncomfortably, and he started muttering something about mindreading under his breath. He ignored the princess as well. Rin, still daydreaming, skipped her turn. Sayori's theory was similar to Sei's, but replacing the servant with a runaway bride or girlfriend in today's modern times. The princess was ignored again, and Nintai began to feel something of frustration from something.

_It can't be from my friends. Something else is bugging me. What is it?_ Nintai looks around the café, hoping to find some strange guy watching her or an enemy from her last school waiting for her to let her guard down. She found nothing of the sort.

"Something wrong," asks Jinnai.

"No. Just this frustration. I don't know why, though."

Sei smirks and tries to hold back a laugh. "Is someone upset because the last theory was such a joke?" Jinnai take the jab in good stride, commenting about Sei's swiss cheese of a theory.

That left Nintai, whose theory banks on what they'd found at the archeological site in the lake. "A battle occurred there, that's for sure. I found sword marks on the wall, made obvious as the water currents in the lake pulled off more stone in those spots than they did in others. There's also been a few bodies discovered, preserved by the cold depths and already dated to around one and a half centuries ago, just before the fall of clan lords here in japan.

"That pendant happened to be rather close to those sword marks, a bit too close for my tastes to merely say coincidence. I'm not one hundred percent sure what happened, but that pendant has something to do with that battle. Whether the wearer could fight back or not cannot be confirmed, since it's impossible to tell who was wearing it, attacker or defender.

"And it could be that it was the defender running along the wall; there's a tunnel not too far from where the pendant was, and the sword marks are all along that stretch of stone. The attacker could've been wearing it and the chain broke, although it'd be nice if we had that missing chain link."

Nintai pulled the chain separate and looked at the two links. The link between them had either been severed or broken, but which is unknown to her, since they hadn't had time to search for it.

"But, ane," Sayori says, "that pendant is based in silver. Do you know how hard that is to take care of? It couldn't have been in the lake for so long without taking some damage somewhere."

"True," Nintai concedes. "But for some reason, this pendant just doesn't seem like something from modern styles, does it?"

They all agreed on that.

With the café closing soon, and curfew about to pass them all by, everyone makes calls to stay with Nintai at her nearby apartment. They were going to make the most of their meeting and they all decided a sleepover would be a great idea. They stopped by a convenience store, grabbing bags of chips, sodas, and candy packs, then made a beeline for the apartment building two blocks away.

That night, they indulge in scary movies and junk food until they fall asleep on the living room floor. Only Nintai was still up at witching hour, holding the pendant in her hand and staring into the green depths of the gem. She's not even quite sure what happens to her when she falls asleep, but she remembers hearing a voice calling out for help.

There should be no errors in this chapter. All spelling and grammar should be correct. Please, if you found something wrong, give me a heads up so I can fix it for everyone.


	2. Meeting the Girl

Nintai woke up to the sound of birds. _That's odd. They sound a lot closer than usual._ Looking up from her spot on whatever it is she's laying on, Nintai sees trees and a dark night sky dotted with bright stars peeking through. In the distance, she can hear the sound of metal clashing. Sitting up, she sees a familiar figure standing next to one particularly familiar tree.

"Sayori?"

The figure starts and turns. "Ane?"

_That's her, alright._ The sounds of others rousing came to her ears. Nintai checks her surroundings to see Sei, Jinnai, and Rin all waking up as well. With them getting up and Sayori staring at something once more, Nintai decides to check on her friend near the tree. Walking up next to her, she sees what she's staring at.

Below them, and the entrance to a familiar tunnel, is a group of black clad men holding torches and setting up screens to hide the wall. Among them are two men lacking torches. One is also black clad, but missing sleeves and has silver colored hair. He's well-muscled, so Nintai figures him pretty tough in a fight and a hard worker. The other, purple haired and dressed in a style Nintai only saw in pictures of Japanese lords. _Where are we?_

Behind the pair watching the scene, a scream is loosed along with a bright green light. Looking back, Sayori and Nintai see Rin holding a bleeding arm, Jinnai holding onto his sister and Sei standing protectively in front of them. Across from Sei are four men dressed in black. The pendant that had been found at the dig site glows green a little ways away from me. That sense of frustration reaches Nintai once more.

Black clad and holding swords, the attackers advanced on us. Her eyes focus on something else out of place. Next to the green pendant is another, smaller one, blue in color, and using a piece of string as a chain. _Reach for me!_

Spurred by a thought in my head, she dash for the pendant, only to be met by another black clad man. Without thinking, she raised her ankle as hard as she could into his crotch, making contact with something she knew would be painful to hit. He falls to the ground, moaning and cursing at Nintai and gaining the attention of his comrades.

Seeing her do damage to one of their own, the four others moved after her, forgetting Sei and the two behind him. Nintai, still feeling frustrated, reached the pendants and picked up both. The blue flashes brightly, enveloping everything, and a voice reaches her ears; _I'll guide you. Just flow through the motions._

What she sees once the light subsides is five figures, all bleeding from various injuries. None of the wounds look fatal, so Nintai assumes they're all alive. The green pendant still in her hand flashes next as screams ring out. Recognizing one to be Sayori, Nintai turns to her friend, whose collapsing into Sei's arms. The other, distant but still clear as the word help rides the moving winds, shatters Nintai's heart.

The pendant's glow dies as Sei shakes Sayori, attempting to wake her. _Place it on her._ A faint thought slips into Nintai's mind and she does as she's told. Taking the green pendant, she forces Sei to stop what he's doing and clasps it around the unconscious girl's neck.

The next thing the four awake teens see is Sayori's body glowing green and dissipating into a dust. In the air, the winds change direction, carrying the floating green particles toward the screens and the torches leaving them behind. Once they've entered between the screens, everything slows down.

Watching the torches, Nintai notices the people starting to walk back… wards. As if in reverse. She sees them reenter the tent, their backs to the entrance as their feet carry them back in. The group then hears groans and movement. Turning back, they see the black clad men going in reverse as well, their wounds disappearing one by one in quick succession as they move faster and faster. Soon, they've disappeared into the trees and the rustling of leaves fades into the distance.

Nintai turns her attention back to the screens and watches as they quickly rewound back into a pile of materials to be carried. Then, the entire group, torches and all, moves quickly along the track they had been walking forwards on only a few moments ago, but this time they're backs are facing the way they're going.

"It's like time is reversing," Sei comments.

"Yeah, it is," Nintai agrees. "Just one thing though. Where's Sayori? And what should we do to get to her?"

Jinnai points out the obvious. "The tunnel."

Rin looks at her brother, arm healed but still cradling it like it was still bleeding. "Easier said than done. Those torches could simply walk through those trees any moment now. With so much ground to cover from this hill to that wall, we'd never beat them if we don't know where they are."

"True, but you won't know until you've tried it." Nintai jumps at the new voice, looking around to see no one there. "Down here, ko." Nintai looks into her hand to see the blue pendant in her hand glowing. "There you go! Now then, just go down there. Times gone back by several hours, so your friend should be safe and you need to go get her.

"Just sneak into the castle and pretend to be newly hired employees on trial runs. It'll be easy. All you'll need is to steal a few uniforms."

"Ummm… Nintai?"

"Yes, Sei?"

"I'm not just imagining that thing, am I? It's talking right," he says, staring intently at the gem, like we wants to tear it apart and study its pieces.

Nintai shakes her head. "I don't know if it's a mass hallucination or if it's real. But I plan on following its advice. So, then, off to the castle and our friends rescue!"

Nodding assent, the other three follow the confident and motivated Nintai down the hill at a jog.

* * *

Sayori opens her eyes to a candle lit room. Tatami mats make up the floor and a paper door sits in front of her eyes. As she questions where she is, a man knocks on the door and says "excuse me" before entering the room. She sits up in surprise at the visitor, thinking back to the dream she had just had.

_Oh, calm down, Muneshige! Why should I be the only one who behaves while everyone else enjoys the festival!_

A caretaker by the name of Muneshige was crouched in front of her, pulling on her arm and telling her to follow him. Just as they exit the room, two ninja rush down the hall, blades unsheathed and arcing towards the Hatsuhime's bodyguard. Luckily, he happens to be one of the best in the Mochizuki clan.

* * *

Hearing a commotion above her head, Nintai crawls out from underneath a large tree. Rin soon follows. The boys, unfortunately, were too big to go through the entire tunnel. A little ways in the ceiling had lowered to such a height that the girls could barely crawl through. It had also taken all of Rin's restraint to not scream when a spider web or a worm touched her skin.

As a plan, Nintai and Rin would slip in through the tunnel and collect some uniforms for everyone. Then, the two were to slip back out using the tunnel and get back to the boys. The voice from the blue gem assured the group that Sayori, who was somewhere in the castle, would be there for a few days, hidden somewhere with a man named Muneshige. What they needed to do was find the two of them and help get them out without being seen.

Nintai had convinced the others that planning any further than getting in would be wasting time for them at that particular moment. But she'd told the boys to go ahead and think of some options on their own while she and Rin were away. The meeting point was the clearing where they had woken up.

With everything set, the girls had gotten onto their hands and knees and started down the tunnel once more. The boys had turned around and headed out to hide and avoid the group of what they decided were ninja hidden amongst the trees. Lucky for Sei, Jinnai had experience hiding all sorts of things, from keys, to entire cars.

"We've got nothing to worry about concerning those two, right?"

"Don't worry, Rin. Your brother is good at what he does, and Sei knows how to give credit. They'll be fine. What we need to worry about right now is ourselves. See all those guards?"

Rin nods her head and Nintai goes into an explanation of their patterns. The guards, dressed in black are moving like cats as they search anywhere and everywhere. The girls notice that those not wearing black are just standing at specific points, and that the men in black are avoiding them and the torches that light the area surrounding them.

"Think of this as a game of hide and seek."

Nintai looked at the small pendant resting on her chest. "Hide and Seek?"

"Yup," came the disembodied voice. "Hide and seek. Don't get caught by anyone, stick to the shadows, that kind of stuff. You know, the game that increases sneaking ability if you play right."

"We're well aware of what hide and seek is," Rin snaps quietly.

Nintai places her hand on the other girl's shoulder. After leaving her brother to fend for himself, she is, of course, irritated and itching to get back to him. The two have always worked together, but Nintai believed her skill as bait would make escaping a situation easier. Men will believe anything, after all. And this place is definitely full of stupid boys.

Nintai, tapping what little skill she has in the game of hide and seek, looks for the secret hidden path. Feeling a pressing need to work quickly, she builds the path step by step, sticking to the darkness around them and avoiding the lights, much like the dark clothed men. The difference between her and them, though, is that she sees all the potential hiding spots without bias.

"Let's go, Rin. Stay close and use the front of your feet when moving. I'll go first. Keep to the hiding spot behind me, got it?"

Understanding with ease, Rin shifts off her knees and into a crouch. Where Nintai has her little pendant to guide her through what she has to do during this little 'game,' Rin has natural ability in this, and easily slips into the shadows when she moves. After a few minutes of slipping from patch of shadow to patch of shadow, Nintai slides under the boards of the deck. Moving a little ways in, she soon hears Rin sliding in as well.

"You good, Rin," Nintai whispers.

"Yeah," comes the quiet response.

The two crawl around under the floors above them, hearing the running of footsteps on the wood as if someone's life depends on how fast they can go. Feeling nervous about the pendant, Nintai suddenly stops, startling Rin, and shoved it under her shirt.

"Hey! Don't put me in here!"

"Be quiet," Nintai hisses.

"No way! You don't shove a guy into your shirt!"

Nintai freezes. _It's a boy!?_ Her head is spinning, and the idea of carrying around a boy pendant isn't appealing to her right now. At any rate, though, she has to deal with it, since everything around her is currently hostile and the idea of losing said boy pendant in the mud also didn't appeal to her. Something about it made her want to hold onto it, not to mention the question of what it did when she picked it up.

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Nintai continues crawling forward, feeling the blood rushing into her cheeks. _Why'd it have to be a boy?_ She hears Rin behind her, holding in a laugh. _I should've come by myself._ Rin's muffled laughter, however, wasn't muffled enough. Above them, a man with particularly amazing hearing and long silver hair had heard them.

Back outside the castle walls, Jinnai and Sei are having trouble staying hidden. No matter what try, the two are constantly heard and easily found. It's been pure luck that they haven't been caught yet. Jinnai has been cursing Sei for his clumsiness since they separated from the girls. His feelings mostly came from his separation from his sister, causing misguided aggression.

Sei, on the other hand, is thanking a god he doesn't believe in that he went with Jinnai. The kid is a natural at this, much like his sister, and spots the ninja seconds before they're found. Not to mention that he's corrected several issues in Sei's sneaking already, including how he places his feet and how quickly he moves.

Now, with absolute, not really, ease, Sei keeps up with Jinnai's instructions and pace. As the two slip between bushes and trees, they realize that the hill is within site, and that plenty of time has passed.

The group of men, whom the group of teens had seen going in reverse, were arriving at the tunnel, and the girls still hadn't come back out yet. Which means they're trapped until the group either disappears or the boys hear the scream for help… again.

* * *

While hiding in a tree, Sayori stares quietly at Muneshige's features. In the dream she'd been having, she'd heard Hatsuhime's thoughts as he carried her away from the assassins after her life. The girl had fallen for Muneshige first, but her current feelings were a little difficult to understand and comprehend.

Whether or not she loved the man was obvious; she loved him, completely. But the question was, how? Did she seem him as more of a father figure? After all, a father is his daughter's first love. Or, was there some other feeling there? And why on earth is Sayori currently inhabiting the girl's body? It made no sense.

If Hatsuhime really wanted to be rescued, having someone like Nintai or Rin, whose skills saved them from so many disasters, Sayori stopped keeping count, would be more ideal. The two could sneak in and out of anywhere, even the most high security vault if they put their minds to it. The abilities those two have are amazing and unpredictable.

"Hatsuhime," Muneshige whispers, "are you alright? Do you think you can move?"

"Oh. Yes, I can move."

"Good. I want you to do something for me. Go down this tunnel until you reach the outside of the wall." Muneshige, like the secret-tunnel-loving boy he is, points out an open space Sayori hadn't noticed when she climbed under the tree. She recognized this particular event clearly.

"No!"

"Sorry?"

"No, I won't go!"

* * *

Holding as still as possible, the girls hold their breaths as a man with silver hair tracks them down. _I really should've left her behind with the boys and brought Sei._ After they'd crawled to the servant quarters underneath the floor, the girls had slipped out from underneath the floor and slipped into some uniforms.

Walking around with their new uniforms, they'd snuck into the men's section and stolen two of those uniforms. After tearing a sleeve and a pant leg and covering them in dirt, the girls had taken them with the lie that they were to mend and clean them for a pair of male servants.

Unfortunately, the man who'd caught them was not as stupid as some of the guards they'd passed before. Even though Rin had spoken the line perfectly and without flaw, the man had questioned them on why he couldn't remember a female servant with such bright purple hair. Nintai has been cursing her luck and recklessness.

Lee had told her to dye her hair when she went to a new school; now she was paying the price for not listening to her friend's wisdom, regardless of the coincidence.

The girls, still holding the uniforms for the boys, are hiding under the floor boards again, hoping that he doesn't see anything disturbing about the tatami mat in the corner. Luckily for them, some other man calls for the pursuer's attention towards a princess's disappearance and the appearance of several bodies. _Oh thank god!_ Then the two of them were gone, their swift feet carrying them away from the room above the girls' heads.

Rin lets go of her held breath and starts gasping for air, although the stagnant form underneath the floor isn't the best thing to inhale. But, for the moment, the gasping girl didn't care. Nintai, on the other hand, slowly releases the breath she'd been holding and forces herself to breath calmly.

Their relief, however, wears off as they hear more hurried footsteps approach and enter the room. Hearing the slam of a closing door, the girls look at each other in a panic. Next, a flood of fresh air slips underneath the floor as the mat they're hiding under is lifted.

In front of their eyes is a man of mid- to late thirties and a girl around their own age. The two looked shocked to see a pair of girls in servant clothes hiding in the space. But the girl is first to recover as she smiles with joy, recognition clear on her face.

Nintai is the first to recover as the sounds of other footsteps reach her ears. Reaching up, she pulls first the girl, then the man under the floor, letting the tatami mat drop back into place with a small breeze forming from the air displacement.

"What are two servants doing hiding like this," the man says.

Nintai puts her finger to her lips to signal for silence as someone opens the room's door for what seems like the 100th time to the girls. Once they hear the door slam shut again and the footsteps moving away once more, the group lets out a collective breath of relief. Then Nintai answers his question.

"We're looking for a friend who was brought here a few hours back. We've got a few friends just outside the walls waiting for these," she holds up the servant uniforms, "but we've already been caught once, so coming back in with them is out of the question."

The man looks to the girl, who seems to be holding back tears and something else. _What's with her?_ Turning to Rin, Nintai raises an eyebrow, and the girl immediately starts to comfort her like the communication pro she is.


	3. Escape to the Bodyguards

"The girls still aren't back?"

Sei, rubbing his eyes, looks to Jinnai, who'd been too worried for his sister to actually get any sleep. With a frown on his face and drooping eyes, the boy looked terrible, and even worse was that the two have started into their second day off waiting. There didn't seem to be any commotion at the front gates when Jinnai had checked a few hours ago.

And Sei, even with his crummy balance, had seen nothing yesterday when he had climbed a tall tree to see over the wall. Everything inside the castle walls appeared normal, excluding the number of guards posted on the walkways built onto the wall and the number of ninja running the perimeter a few yards outside it. So, with panic starting to rise, the boys get up to move down the hill, only to be stopped when they see smoke start to rise like the panic.

"A fire," Sei breathed.

"I bet they set it. Rin is great at that, and the entire place is made of wood and dried plants. It'll catch with ease."

Sei nodded agreement but for one thing. "They won't let the fire spread, though." Jinnai looks at him in disbelief. "They need a diversion, not a massacre. That fire will occupy soldiers and servants alike, which means the girls will slip out through a weak spot. And what's the weakest spot during a fire?"

Jinnai speaks up quickly. "The wall closest to the fire."

Sei looks at his friend with a smirk on his face. "And that fire just so happens to be close to the wall where the tunnel down there is, now isn't it?"

* * *

Muneshige slips behind the bushes, the girls tailing him. Nintai has to admit, the guy has skill, and she's extremely thankful he's no amateur. The fire Rin started a few minutes ago is meant to attract the attention of the guards and servants alike. Whether the black clad men, or ninja as Muneshige had pointed out, fell for it as well is yet to be seen.

Nintai checks through the bush leaves to see Rin underneath the floor of the walkways. She smiles to herself at the girl's obvious route. It runs along the walkways, and then through the bushes to where Muneshige, Hatsuhime, and Nintai wait. Just a short distance further is the tree with the tunnel underneath.

Hatsuhime had easily agreed to the plan they have, regardless of what Muneshige said about traps and ninja. The princess seems to believe in the new girls wholeheartedly. While the three girls escape through the tunnel, Muneshige would disguise himself as a servant running away from the fire and the possible havoc it could wreak. Nintai and Rin have already warned him about the silver-haired ninja as well, so all the bases are covered, as far as they can tell.

Nintai even explained where he was to meet them when he got out of the gate. He requested almost immediately after hearing the plan that the girls not wait for him and take the princess as far away as possible. To him, if the princess was going to trust them, then he would have to as well.

Nintai left the request unanswered. She's unsure of whether or not she could leave the man to his fate without trying to do something. But she'd seen what depression and failure could do to a man, and ignoring his request could get his charge caught and executed, which would completely ruin him. Just like her father.

She quickly shakes the thought form her mind. She loves her dad and all, but now is not the time, nor the place, to think about him and his mistakes. With a new determination in heart, she checks on Rin again as her friend slips into the first bush, then to the next. With speed Nintai had never seen from her before, Rin reached the last hiding spot before Nintai's.

Turning to the two in the next bush, she gives her signal, a reflection from the blue pendant around her neck. Muneshige then returned the signal using his sword. _Good to go, then._ Signaling to Rin, the group starts moving from one bush to another, reaching the tree in a matter of moments.

"Princess, you'll have to take this with you," Muneshige says as he holds out the longer of his two blades. "I can hide the other one in this servant outfit, but this one is too long to take with me."

Taking it carefully, the princess nods, worry clear in her eyes.

"C'mon, princess. We need to get moving before they take care of that fire," Nintai calls from under the tree.

And with that, the girl in the princess's body slips under the roots and into the tunnel with the other two girls.

* * *

The boys, having a gut feeling, are hiding among the upper leaves of a tree, much like the ninja had been doing before being lured away by the fire. The two had been waiting for a mere half hour before they see Nintai emerge from the darkness from the tunnel, followed by Rin and a girl they don't know.

Immediately, the two climb down and rush over to them.

"Hey, guys. How're the baby birds, doing," Nintai asks.

"Ha ha, loads of laughs. Where's Sayori? Did you find her?"

Nintai stares at Sei with a complicated expression. "Well, yes and no."

"Let me, ane," says the unknown girl. "Sei, Jinnai. It's me. I'm Sayori."

The two boys look dumfounded as the three girls burst into fits of giggles at their expressions. As the boys attempt to figure out what's going on, the girls turn them around and guide them back to the top of the hill. Once there, the group of teens attempt to figure out what's happening, and how to get home.

Sayori explains who she looks like, and that she believes she has inhabited the princess's body to prevent her death. Sei then adds onto it further by connecting the current events with the story the group had been talking about the day Nintai and Sayori had brought the pendant to the café. Jinnai focuses on the castle lord, telling about how he'd seen a man with dark purple hair walking around the grounds like he owned the place.

"The front gates are so pathetically protected, you'd think they're inviting a siege from some neighboring warlord."

Rin then points out a figure climbing the hill. "I think it's Muneshige."

"Remember, boys," Nintai says severely, "that you have to call Sayori 'princess.' Otherwise he'll know something's up and try to sneak off with her. We've already had problems finding her once; I don't feel like doing it again."

The boys nod with grim determination and stand to greet the newcomer. Muneshige, his breathing a little uneven, but normal for the most part, looks at the two of them with assessing eyes. Liking what he sees, he introduces himself to them and turns to Nintai.

"I thought I asked you to go on ahead."

"Yes, you did," she responds. "But I never said I would. This girl is your princess, and letting her walk away with some group of teenagers you don't know is a bit irresponsible, you know? I figured you needed to be scolded, and although I would love to do so right now, I'm afraid we've spent enough time here. Time to move."

With that, the group of teenagers plus one adult start forward. Only Nintai, whose intuition is her greatest strength, has a feeling of anxiety. _This was a bit too easy._

* * *

"Lord Harumoto. The traps are set and the princess has gotten outside the walls."

In a room filled with expensive furniture, a silver-haired ninja and a man with purple hair keep their conversation quiet.

"Good. Don't fail me this time, Kasumimaru."

Kasumimaru bows gracefully, holding all his dignity as a ninja with pride, and disappears into thin air. The ninja in the castle move from the perimeter into the forest, believing themselves to have an easy victory.

* * *

Feeling drowsy from a few hours of walking on what seemed to be no sleep, the girls lag behind the boys as the group climbs the hilly track. Nintai, although tired, is scanning the surroundings. To her, something seems off, out of place, even.

"What is it, ane?" Sayori, trapped in another girl's body, looks at her friend questioningly.

"It's nothing, imōto. Just making sure of something."

Nintai truly worries for Sayori; not only is she trapped in a new body, but Nintai is technically responsible for it. She'd been the one who placed the pendant around her neck, which remains there even now. _Would removing it change that fact? No, these things occur for a reason. If I want to get her home, then I have to keep her alive long enough for the other girl to regain control._

Checking on the boys ahead, Nintai notices that the three of them had fallen behind quite a bit. Taking Sayori's hand, she pulls her along at a more increased pace, Rin keeping up with them. If her feeling proves right, Nintai, Rin and Sayori would the primary targets in any attack. It only makes sense, after all.

"Ane?"

Nintai looks back. "What is it?"

"I get that we can't leave this place yet, but shouldn't we be going to shrines or something? Why walk around in the middle of nowhere."

Nintai shakes her head, amused. "Remember this, imōto. We need to escape pursuit first. That's always task number one in this kind of situation. Visiting a shrine now would just cause problems, for us and the priests and priestesses."

Nodding her head, Sayori focuses back on the track and not slipping. Up ahead, the boys have stopped to wait for them. Muneshige has a bit of a concerned expression for the girls, but the teen boys don't seem too worried.

The group goes through a quick conversation and everyone agrees that a rest would be perfect just up ahead. Although the girls are tired, Nintai doesn't exactly think being attacked on a track would be the most advantageous to them. She wants a place where she can protect her friends with as little complication as possible.

That's why the group agreed on a leveled clearing just up ahead. Muneshige said that it offered plenty of open space for fighting ground, although he found it hard to believe that Nintai intends to fight back as well.

_I still don't know what occurred on the first night. He said he'd guide me through it, and I let him. But that doesn't explain why I don't remember what I did._ Thoughts of protecting her friends mingled with her helplessness with memory. In her heart, she's well aware that she can fight and that quite a bit of it is natural talent. But the world she's from doesn't require martial arts as a fundamental skill for anyone.

Once at the top of the hill, all three girls immediately lay down on the grass. Worried as they are, everyone is tired and needs a long nap. Unfortunately for them, though, life isn't fair, ninja are amazing, and the teens just happen to be fighting fate itself.

Nintai, however, has been waiting for her intuition to be proven right, and is up in seconds with her heel in one man's gut. With one adversary on the ground, she moves to the next while keeping her ears open to the others.

Sayori is with Muneshige, holding his hand as he cuts through one pathetic fighter after another. Jinnai and Rin, like the tricksters they are, just so happen to have several flammable materials on them. Rin, like the pyro she is, is setting them on fire while tossing them; Nintai notices that, somehow, the girl had managed to get ahold of a lighter from somewhere. Jinnai is packing the stuff together, making dense grenade-like projectiles.

"This is pretty fun," Rin calls matter-of-factly.

"Sure, let's go with that."

And then the first one goes off, charring several trees and scattering debris.

"Careful, you two!" Sei slams his elbow into someone's jaw; not so lucky for the ninja who'd been hit but amazing luck for Sei as the opponent falls to the ground unconscious.

_We're fairing far too well. What the heck is going on?_ Nintai, dropping another enemy, looks back at her friends, taking in everything happening. The boys aren't injured. Rin may have a burn or two on her fingers, but she doesn't seem to be worried about a mere burn. Muneshige and Sayori are fine as well. That leaves herself, but she's been doing just as good, if not better.

"But nothing like this should ever be easy."

"That's true, ko," the blue pendant chimes in.

"You? I was wondering why you'd been so quiet. What's going on?"

The pendant was silent for a moment, hanging on her neck and glowing faintly. "I think the world is trying to test your strength. See what you can do. These guys on the ground don't seem to have had pulses at all, not to mention that they don't even have weapons."

Nintai thought about it. Since she'd stopped fighting back, the ninja in the clearing had ignored her completely, which was not necessarily a good idea. And it's true that weapons were nowhere to be seen.

"So this is more of a mass hallucination kind of thing?"

"That's right! Mass hallucination," the blue glow pulses with the syllables.

With that conclusion reached, Nintai walks over to Sei first, and pulls him away from an oncoming target. Once the ninja flies by him, it falls to the ground and stops moving. This gains Jinnai and Muneshige's attention. Seeing him stop moving, the others immediately avoid some of the ninja themselves to see the exact same event occur.

"What the," Sei started.

"Don't bother. We've been wasting time and energy here, not to mention given away our position. I won't be surprised if real ninja catch up to us soon."

The others nod and the group gets moving again, only to be caught again. This time, though, the ninja are definitely real, and so are their weapons. They had only walked a few minutes into the greenery of the trees and underbrush when they dropped from the trees, blades reflecting the sun into their eyes. Nintai already has a plan for this, but Muneshige doesn't wait for the call and immediately takes Sayori's hand.

"Run!" And the others follow.

"Oh, brilliant, just turn standing targets into moving targets. Perfect idea," Nintai mutters as she rushes after them while dodging a sword stroke.

Going uphill was also a problem she noticed as she saw the others ahead of her. Jinnai is pulling along his sister while Muneshige guides Sayori along. Sei is keeping an eye out ahead, ready to call out a warning when it becomes necessary. Although they're working well together, the teens lack any real battle experience.

The only time they'd ever fought anything was just a few minutes ago, and those target weren't fighting back. In the face of a real enemy, they could do nothing but run. That's when Nintai heard laughter; extremely happy but somewhat cruel. It was the one kind of laugh she hoped she'd never have to hear once she'd transferred school. Life just hates her right now.

She doesn't dare look back at the sound of it, but she can't simply keep running and let the guy catch up to the others. Then the group ahead breaks through a cluster of brush and Nintai hears metal clashing. _No!_

And she picks up speed she didn't know she had. The brush disappears behind her and what she sees shocks her. Five men, each fighting back, are beating black clad men left and right. Sayori and Rin are standing back, protected by Muneshige and some kid with greenish hair. Jinnai and Sei are checking the girls for any injuries.

While she watches, Nintai notices the presence behind her and turns to face a man with long silver hair. _Him again!?_ She immediately backs off.

"Nintai, I'll guide you! Let me!"

With the pendant calling out, she falls into a blue glow and watches from a distance as her body charges in to take on the newcomer. Taken by surprise, the ninja barely dodges a high jump kick. The servant uniform kimono Nintai had been wearing slips off to reveal her school uniform beneath. Rin and Nintai didn't think it a good idea to leave them behind.

Still watching from a distance, Nintai floats above the battle. She checks on everyone else to see Jinnai, Rin, Sei and Sayori watching her in astonishment. The men fighting have noticed her, but don't find it as odd that her body can move the way it is. She turns her attention back to her own body, watching the blue pendant glowing and her own fists and feet aiming for weak spots.

Ninja or not, the man is still human. Staring at the movements her body makes, Nintai is surprised at her own flexibility every time her body bends to dodge, or at her agility slipping past an attack. The ninja can't make any contact, and is quickly running out of breath as he tries to keep up with the girl's speed.

Before he can do any more she slips past him one more time and slams her elbow into his spine. _Ouch… that has to hurt._ With him slamming into a tree, Nintai feels a pull and she is dragged back to her body, given control once more. She touches the pendant lying against her chest and stares at the ninja as he breathes heavily.

He glares at her, then notices what's behind her. His entire squad with him is taking small steps away from the men holding up blades and fists. With that scene in front of him, along with an apathetic stare from an extremely skilled girl, he feels as if his only choice is one word.

"Retreat!"

And with that, every black clad ninja disappears. Nintai, shaking from adrenaline she didn't notice before, collapses to the ground. Sayori is the first next to her, then Sei and finally the twins, all asking her what's wrong. But nothing comes out of her open mouth.

"That was amazing, miss!"

Nintai jumps and hears someone saying sorry over and over. Looking behind her, she sees Rin pulling at the green haired guy's ear. The other men who have joined them are standing nearby, trying to hold back laughter. _Just after a battle and they're laughing? Then again…_ She looks back at Rin, still pulling at the guy's ear.

And she can't stop herself from giggling, no matter how hard she tries to hold it back. Sayori, Sei, and Jinnai look at each other before smiles break out across their faces, and then chuckles break through the smiles. When Rin realized what was happening, she immediately let go, turning bright red.

The shaking Nintai had been experiencing dissipates easily at the spectacle and everyone goes through introductions and explanations. Nintai and the other teens naturally have to lie.

"Lost friend?"

Nintai nods her head at Bo, taking in the sheen of his purple hair. _He really is pretty, isn't he?_ "That's right. We thought she was in the castle these two were escaping. We'd been searching it for a few days when we were found out. That's when we Rin and I hid under the floor with those two."

Muneshige looks at her, confused. "I thought you'd just got there?"

Rin speaks next. "No, Nintai and I were there for about three days before my brother and Sei got there. They made contact with us when we went walking outside the castle walls. We had been planning to stay in there for a few more days to find little Sai, but that obviously didn't happen."

The blonde, named Ittosai, speaks up next. "Then why are you here? Shouldn't you get back to your search?"

Nintai stares blankly at him. "You have no morals, do you?"

The men she'd been introduced wince and look from one to the other. "Is that a problem?"

"Not really. It'll just give me a reason to torment you for the next few days." Everyone around feels the cold as if it were real, and Sayori could swear she was seeing sparks flying between the two as they glared at each other.

"Alright, then! Moving on," Yo says, his green hair covering the red mark still on his ear, "We all need to get moving. Girls and boys, thank you for getting the princess to us, but you don't need to come any farther. We can han-"

Nintai raises her eyebrow. "You can what?" he had frozen in place.

"I do believe the world is trying to tell you something," yawns the blue pendant.

"You really don't like it when other hear you, do you?"

Sayori looks closely at the pendant. "Maybe he's shy?"

"No I'm not! I just don't think it's a good idea for anyone beside you kids to know that I'm here. Being a decoration of a neck is much easier than being a trapped tactician."

Nintai stares at the pendant, surprised. "You're a tactician."

"That's right, and a pretty good one two. Now then, please turn your attention to the west. That glow from the sunset isn't natural, is it?"

Nintai nods. Something unnatural had happened to the sun. it was glowing green instead of orange. "That's the way home, isn't it?"

Sayori claps her hands happily. "That's great! Let's get out of here!" she immediately starts walking.

"Not so fast, princess," the pendant calls. "You can't leave. These four can."

"Excuse me," Nintai says. "What the hell!" Her shout echoes through the hills.

"Sorry, but the princess still isn't safe yet. Until she is, Sayori has to stay in her body and protect her life."


	4. Staying Behind

Gripping the pendant around her neck tightly, Nintai looks at her friend. The first person to break through her walls, and one of the few who didn't use her friendship as some sort of status. Thinking about how she had watched over the girl since the first time Sayori had gotten through to her, Nintai smiled softly. Jinnai, Rin and Sei saw this and immediately nodded to each other.

"We all can't leave," Sei says. "But all of us staying is likely to just cause more problems than solutions. One of us, at least, needs to stay."

The three teens start walking off, each patting Nintai on the shoulder and wishing her luck. _What just happened?_ Then she realized what they'd done; they showed her a way to keep everything in check. She really does find the wiser ones.

"Hold on a second! Nintai can't stay! She needs to go back too!"

Rin looks to Nintai and the pendant around her neck. "Someone needs to make sure Sayori gets home safe and sound. Besides, it's not like she could just leave our little princess behind to fend for herself!"

Jinnai calls out to Rin as he floats I midair. "Hurry up, sis! This is awesome!"

"Coming! Bye Nintai, Sayori! Be careful and watch out for each other, kay?"

The two nod with smiles on their faces.

"So not right," the voice chimes.

Nintai sighs happily. Her friends would be safe back home. And she would be able to keep Sayori safe by staying with her. Not once has she considered her own safety throughout this ordeal, and it seems she's not about to start, either.

"Ane, are you sure this is okay?"

Nintai looks to Sayori and nods. "It's the only way I'll be able to keep you safe myself. I don't trust these guys quite yet. Muneshige is definitely a bodyguard, and he's completely loyal. But these five?" She looks at the bodyguards sent by an old man named Yahei. "I just can't trust them yet, especially that blonde."

Sayori smiles when she sees her friend glaring at the man who moments ago had been slaughtering men happily. She has to admit that Nintai was right about him. Or at least, about the first impression he gave. Trusting a guy who would slice a guy in half with a smile on his face isn't exactly her idea of being smart.

"Hello!? Anyone noticing the disappearing green!? Nintai, you need to go!"

"You be quiet. I'm staying with my imōto, no more discussion. Sayori, get back to where you were before they all froze. Let's get moving."

As Sayori steps into place, the men start moving again.

"-dle this ourselves! …Hey, where'd the other three go?"

"Other three," Nintai says, staring at him blankly.

Yo starts jumping from one line to  
another. Nintai tries to keep up with him, but gives up and turns to Jin. "Is there a way to get him to stop? Um… Jin?"

The red head is staring at the spaces where the three missing teens had been standing moments before, or through his perspective, just now. Nintai looks to the other men as well, each one is watching the spots where the teenagers had been expectantly. _What, do they think this is a magic trick?_ Taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly, Nintai holds her anger, then looks back through the men. They're still staring and Yo has finally stopped trying to talk.

"Oh, enough of this! Pay attention, you dum dums!" Everyone jumps at the sound of her agitated voice. "If you're not even going to listen to me, then at least start walking! I'd like to get her highness home so I can get on with my life, thank you!"

With that, she grabbed Sayori's hand and starts walking along the track once more. Muneshige is the first to react and immediately hurries to catch up to them. The other five snap out of their shock soon afterward and follow after the girls as well.

* * *

"Lord Harumoto." Kasumimaru stands behind the castle lord's chair.

"What is it? Is she dead, yet?"

Kasumimaru flinches at the agitation in his master's voice. Not only had he failed the first time to kill the princess, but he had failed yet again. The trap had anticipated the original bodyguard, and Kasumimaru's gut instinct on the girls he'd seen before was supposed to give him another advantage as well.

But he hadn't anticipated the girl with the lotus colored hair to be able to fight like that. Her speed was greater than his, along with her reflexes, and if anything, she had been holding back. She had to be, what with the blank stare and lack of exhaustion that he had experienced.

"I regret to inform you that she is not. A group of warriors intercepted and defended them." He waits quietly, expecting a tirade of rage and annoyance.

"I have one thing to ask you."

Kasumimaru starts. A tirade and angry rage, he expected, but a simple question? "What is it, my lord?"

"Where did the bruise come from?"

Kasumimaru checks himself over, and sure enough there is a bruise on his arm. "This is…"

Harumoto looks over his shoulder. "I suggest you figure it out. And do something about that girl! Don't come back until you do."

Harumoto turns back to his desk and continues his work. Kasumimaru bows gracefully before disappearing into thin air yet again.

* * *

Nintai and Sayori are a bit behind. The boys they're traveling with are used to moving constantly, so they're doing fine. However, due to the distance, Nintai doesn't have to keep reminding herself to say 'princess' every time she talks to Sayori.

"So, once this girl's life is no longer in danger, we get to go home?" Sayori seems a bit hopeful, but depressed at the same time.

"I know how you feel, imōto. The likely that we leave here any time soon is really low. But still, I'm here with you, and I'm not letting either of us be trapped in this place."

The boys stop and turn to wait for them, but only the blonde one doesn't seem concerned; more annoyed than anything. With things the way they are, the girls will be unable to keep going. That idea in mind, a few of the boys ahead start talking.

"Why don't we just carry them? Nintai seems to be okay, but I'm sure she's just putting on a brave face," says Yo. "After all, a girl is a girl."

"I doubt that," Ittosai mutters.

Jin steps in next. "What was that, Ittosai?"

The two glare daggers at each other, as usual. The group had been walking for only a few hours and already the two of them were at each other's throats. Not only that, but this has already happened several times as the group walked along the trail.

"Stop it, you two," Bo scolds. "We need to keep moving. And besides, the princess seemed pretty independent when we met her, right?"

Mon-Mon, a spiky, silver haired man with the build of a body builder, pipes up happily. "I'll carry them!" He hadn't even heard what Bo had been saying.

"Go for it, Mon-Mon!" Yo cheers him on.

"Hey! You can't just take both girls for yourself," Jin says bitterly.

The group continues to squabble about the girls' ability to keep walking. Once the two catch up to them, Yo elbows Mon-Mon and nods in their direction. The idea was to have Mon-Mon carry one girl, who Muneshige had said who would be Nintai. Muneshige would then carry the princess himself.

"Are you two alright," came the start line from the large man's mouth.

Nintai looks up at him. "I'm fine." Then to Sayori. "How about you, princess?"

Sayori, breathing unevenly, isn't paying as much attention to the question as she is to catching her breath. Nintai chuckles a little, then taps her shoulder to get her attention. When the girl looks up from the ground, her breath settling, she finally answers.

"I'm alright. Why?"

Mon-Mon looks at Yo, who makes a shooing motion in a sign to keep going. "Are you sure? You seemed a bit far back, and I figured you were running out of energy."

Seeing him having trouble, Muneshige steps up next to him. "If you need any help, you can ask. You two aren't used to this, and if you want us to, we can carry you."

Nintai bites her lip. The last time she'd ever been carried had been by her father at a carnival days before he'd been fired and come home drunk. Being reminded of him doesn't seem like a good idea to her, nor an appealing one, at the moment. _I need to focus on getting home first. Then I can worry about him and these memories._ Nintai finds herself shaking her head.

"No thanks, I'm good." Muneshige had been expecting that answer from the bright haired girl. "But I think the princess is having trouble with the track. Mon-Mon, why don't you carry her? It'll be easier for everyone."

Sayori freezes, staring at Nintai in disbelief. Muneshige starts to say something, but Muneshige cuts him off. "Alright then! Well, princess?" He gets down in front of her, offering his back.

"Go ahead. You're out of energy anyways," Nintai says as she gently pushes Sayori forward.

The girl, red-faced and nervous, wraps her arms around the man's neck and settle into a piggyback. Muneshige, paled from shock and a tormented heart, watches as Mon-Mon starts walking again, smiling happily. The group returns to their trek, when Mon-Mon suddenly tells Sayori to hold on tight and bursts into a sprint up the trail.

Wide-eyed at his change in pace, everyone immediately starts running to keep up with him. Among the trees they pass, Nintai hears a faint sound of leaves rustling, but lacking wind to cause it. _They're still there, huh? I guess the ninja are just too stubborn._ She looks forward at Sayori, holding onto Mon-Mon tightly as he speeds up the path, and vows to herself yet again that she will protect her friend from those after her life.

However, first things first. She had to catch Mon-Mon and trip him. What she does catches everyone around her off guard; she pushes forward with her feet, as if she was jumping, and gains a burst of speed. Doing this multiple times, and by instinct no less, she catches up with Mon-Mon in less than a minute, then passes him another moment later.

Once past him, she speeds ahead to the turn in the track and waits for him with a glare. The man, feeling her icy fury, slows down to stop in front of her, his face pale. Sayori climbs off his back and stands next to Nintai, hand over her racing heart.

"Never suggest that again. I thought I was going to have a heart attack, he was running so fast." Sayori continues to try calming her heart rate as the other catch up as well.

Muneshige then leads them down a less obvious trail leading further into the forests. Before entering the darkened space, where the sun could never be seen, Nintai looks at the angles of the sun, hoping to tell the time somehow. Her stomach said dinner would be soon, so she assumed that the sun would be in the west, getting close to setting.

With her eyes on the sun's position, she memorized the angle of her head and memorized it to mean 'dinner time.' This is the third time she's done so today, one for every meal of the day. It may sound a lot like gluttony, but the girl has her stomach trained to eat at specific times every day. No snacks, just meals. Therefore, her clock is set using her hunger. A rather smart way to tell time, all things considered.

On her way up the track to catch the others, she continually reminds herself to keep an eye out for food. Anything she could pick or pluck from the ground. Her only issue was that the twins knew all about the different edible plants; they often used food to cause teachers stomach trouble so no one had to actually work.

And Sei was the one who could cook practically anything into something delicious. Being reminded of her friends traps her in her thoughts for a few minutes before she snaps out of her reverie and turns to hurry up the track, still keeping her eyes peeled for anything edible.

In the trees above her head, Kasumimaru watches her with interest. Although the girl seemed to be one hell of a fighter, her movements now seemed a bit clumsy. What's worse, they seem completely natural. Of course, some people can only be coordinated during battle, so it didn't bother him too much. What did was that she passed several sets of fruits that she could've easily eaten.

Judging by the sun, he knew it would be close to dinner, and the bodyguards and girls would have to eat eventually. And the way she'd watched the sun, he knew that she was checking the time of day. Combining the fighting skill, agility, and the many other talents she'd been showing over the course of the day, she could only be a ninja. So, why is she not recognizing the safe foods?

It's one of the first things a ninja learns; poisoning with food is the most common assassination skill. Knowing what covers up which taste of poison is important, so knowing what you can and can't eat comes with the practice as well, without the teachers even discussing it.

"What is she doing?"

Nintai, feeling like she's being watched, keeps walking, making mental notes of the local vegetation species and where along the track she can find edible ones. The view of the others backs disappeared every so often as the track twists and turns. Muneshige, up front continues to walk with purpose and conviction. The bodyguards follow without question, and Sayori looks back every once in a while to check that Nintai is still behind them.

"Hey, miss. What's wrong?" Yo, with an adorable smile on his face, examines Sayori's face carefully.

"Oh, nothing," she responds, knowing that her cheeks, or rather, the princess's, were turning red.

"Really? You seem sort of preoccupied. Are you still think about that piggyback ride from Mon-Mon," he teases.

Sayori immediately shakes her head, laughing. "No. I've gotten over the shaking, so I'm fine about that now."

"About that, huh? So there is something bugging you," Jin chimes in just ahead. He's been worrying, and some insight into her worries would be useful, or so he hopes.

"Wow! Jin used his brain," Yo mocks.

The two immediately start a back and forth squabble about Jin's intelligence. The sight makes Sayori smile. A little further ahead, Bo calls back to her.

"Good to see you smiling, princess."

Nintai, hearing all of this, realizes that it wasn't necessary for her to stay behind with Sayori to protect her. These men would do it gladly, with the exception of the blonde, who has stayed quite ever since his last fight with Jin just before Mon-Mon had started sprinting. She notices him looking around in the trees as well. _He's noticed the ninja now, too._

As creepy as he is, Nintai has to admit that he's good at what he does. The blonde looks back at her, and she nods her head then looks at the trees. _He's probably hoping I'm the first attacked. And, unfortunately, I have to agree that that would be best._ Breathing deeply, Nintai scans the trees once more, hoping to see some sort of sign that she was the main target.

Unfortunately, no such sign came, and the group continues to climb the track they're on. Nintai, tired of waiting for the enemy to make a move, attempts to catch up to the others, hoping to talk to either Ittosai or Muneshige. First person she talks to once caught up, Muneshige.

"Where are we headed?"

Everyone pays close attention to the conversation as Muneshige explains about a hot spring in the mountains. It was once prized for an ability to heal battle wounds. Plus, he thought the girls would like a small break and a chance to get all the accumulated dirt off their skin. _Wow. How thoughtful. He really is loyal to this princess, isn't he?_

Sayori, a few feet behind her, thinks happily of a bath. Then an idea occurred to her, not to mention to the rest of the group. Would they have to bathe together? Or were there separate springs? She was turning red as she thought about it. And the one person who should not be thinking about this just so happens to ask.

"Muneshige," Mon-Mon starts. "Are these baths co-ed?"

Jin turns red. "Co-ed!?" And immediately he is lost in his own world, oblivious to the direction of the conversation.

Muneshige turns to the man. "Mon-Mon! You're a monk! Why do you even think about that!?"

"Well, we do have two young ladies with us. Wouldn't it be dangerous for them to bathe without someone to guard them?" Nintai has to admit that Mon-Mon's point was partially valid.

"Mon-Mon. You've forgotten something," Nintai states blandly. "I'm no weakling, and this princess is not going to be in any form of danger when I am around."

All the boys stop and stare at her back as she continues up the slope. Their silence is full of questions, loud and clear. But she has no intention of answering any of them. Sayori, the only one not shocked by her statement, continues up the track as well, feeling a sense of pride and compassion for her friend.

Still watching the girls, Bo says what's on everyone's mind. "She isn't just some girl who happened to stumble on this mission." All the men nod in agreement.

"Both of the girls are hiding something," Yo points out.

"Hatsuhime isn't hiding anything. If she was, I'd notice," Muneshige growls at him.

Holding up his hands, Yo amends his statement. "That's true, but she does at least seem a little off from the when we met her at the festival. Right, Jin? Bo?"

Bo has the faculties to actually nod. Jin is still off in his own little world. After looking back up the track, the boys see the girls way ahead, waiting for them. They all start and rush up the trail to catch up to them; except Ittosai, who walks as he keeps his eyes in the tree. The ninja there notice his staring and immediately retreat once more to avoid being exposed.

A battle at this point in time would be more advantageous to the group defending the princess. Especially with the extra girl whose skills are already being watched by more than just the living.


	5. Hot Spring Distractions

The girls are watching the boys as they stand arguing about who would bathe with them. None of them seem to remember what Nintai had said about a half hour ago, when they'd discuss this exact same topic. The two of them find it amusing how the guys seem to be comparing their pros and cons to one another.

"Well, I am often considered androgynous," Bo says, more or less noncommittally.

"Yeah, but you're still a grown man! I'm just a little boy, so they'll be way more comfortable with me," Yo smiles back.

Mon-Mon pulls out the monk card, claiming to have dropped all worldly pleasures, although Nintai has plenty of doubts about that one. Muneshige tries to end the discussion by saying that the only person who should bathe with the princess in this situation would be her personal bodyguard. Ittosai, enjoying the argument as well, puts forward his thoughts.

"Maybe so, but should said bodyguard also bathe with a woman he's known for only two days as well?"

The guys all look at Nintai. She simply shrugs and turns away. "I don't care, one way or another. It's up to the princess on this one."

And, quite frankly, it's the truth. She'd had to bathe in a pond before in order to avoid being taken in by a shelter or social services. Her father couldn't take care of her, as he had been a total wreck when everything fell apart, and she didn't quite like the idea of some random strangers taking her in and trying to raise her. She was young, not stupid and opinionless*.

The boys all look at Sayori, who has turned bright red at the sudden attention. She preferred it when the five men were arguing with each other and she could laugh without a worry.

"I think we can take baths by ourselves. Thank you for the concern, though."

And with that, Sayori rushes after Nintai, who disappeared to the other side of the hot spring, and on the other side of a rocky division in the water. The boys, disappointed on the inside, all shrug their shoulders like it doesn't matter to them, and get in themselves. All except for Ittosai.

"I'll pass. I have no desires to get close to any of you."

And then the boys launch into an entirely new conversation about the pros of taking baths together. A few minutes later, once everyone is settled, the girls hear the boys goofing off. Nintai, with overly acute hearing, could hear it all with ease.

Jin and Yo are dunking each other like little kids at a pool. Muneshige is getting a massage from Mon-Mon, although it sure doesn't sound like one. Ittosai eventually enters the spring himself, and he and Bo are having a quiet conversation about Ittosai's lack of human interaction, along with what kind of glasses he wears. Sayori and Nintai, on the other hand, sit back in the hot spring, talking about the jokes the twins had pulled or the topics Sei had brought up that everyone had ignored.

"I remember when they first came and sat with us at lunch," Sayori says, pulling a bucket of hot water from the spring.

Already sitting next to the spring, Nintai laughs at the memory. "Sei was so nervous and red. And the twins! What a fail at a prank."

As they talk about their friends, Nintai keeps her ears open to the other sounds around her. Although they're talking quietly so the boys on the other side of the rocks can't hear them, there is still the presence of their enemies to worry about. And even if she can't hear them, Nintai is well aware by now of how quiet a ninja can be.

The two girls stop chatting to get into the water and they hear Jin cry out. Yo just dunked him again, and the girls try to hold back the fits of giggles and laughter trying to escape from them. And when they finally get control of themselves, Nintai feels the stares of a rather annoying, perverted monk. Not to mention she can hear Muneshige hissing at him to stop what he's doing.

"Boys will be boys, I guess," she mutters as she wades over to and leans over the edge of the spring, looking for a good rock.

"Hey, Mon-Mon! What are you doing?"

Now Jin joins the monk and stops short. Nintai waits for the third and inevitable boy to join the group. The unlucky fool, or fools, just happens to be Yo and Ittosai. With their group filled and staring over the rocks, Nintai grabs four good sized rocks from the spring edge and starts playing with them.

"Hey, princess."

Sayori looks at Nintai, confused. She still hasn't noticed the boys staring at the girls from over the rocks. Sitting a few feet away from where Nintai leans on the spring edge, she wonders why her friend had said 'princess' since they're alone. Then a quiet thought slips into her mind and she looks over at the dividing line of stones. Three iffy figures move slightly. A fourth seems to twitch.

"What is it?"

"Well," she starts to say. Ittosai ducks under the water, seeing what's coming with ease. "I thought you might like to play a game."

Nintai, with all the throwing strength in her arm, flings three rocks behind her at the questionable shapes in the steam rising from the spring. All three boys fall back into the water from the impact with loud splashes to accompany them. She then takes aim carefully and throws the last when she hears the sound of surfacing.

Ittosai, who has just come up for air, is hit in the back of the head. Rubbing at the sore spot, he has a hard time telling if it's bleeding. The other three return to the surface as well, each rubbing a sore spot.

"She's got good aim," Yo whines quietly, rubbing his shoulder.

"That really hurt," Jin mutters, holding a new cut on his cheek.

"Well worth it," Mon-Mon whispers to himself as he looks at a yellowing bruise on his chest. Another rock flies over to slam him in the head, leaving a cut similar to Jin's over his eyebrow.

Ittosai sits in the water, holding the back of his head and cursing the three of them for getting him involved. If Yo hadn't said something about checking for enemies in the girls' area, he wouldn't have even moved. Hell, he just wanted something to slash at.

"Nice shot, ane," Sayori whispers to her friend.

"Thanks, imōto."

The two smile happily at each other while Nintai plays with another rock. The next boy to get close to that stone wall is sure to become a target. Enjoying their soak, the girls reluctantly leave the water and get dressed. One issue is that Nintai can't find her school uniform, just the servant's kimono that'd been stolen from the castle.

"I can't wear this thing," she says with contempt as she holds it shut around herself.

"I'm sorry, ane. I don't think any of the boys would admit taking your school uniform, though. Not to mention that, after that display of accuracy, I don't think they're even capable of it."

That left one answer in Nintai's mind. "So the ninja are perverts, then? I'd figured they'd have some form of dignity and decency, but I guess even they're little brats."

Perfectly aware that several ninja were hiding in the trees, Nintai continues to insult them loudly as she ties her kimono shut. The two of them then walk towards where the boys are. And immediately cover their eyes, screaming. Jin is still getting dressed.

Muneshige starts yelling at him to hurry up, but the boy stumbles even more. Bo and Yo, taking initiative, guide the girls away to a nearby cave that Mon-Mon had found a few minutes ago. The two of them then declared that the girls needed some sleep and that the boys would take turns watching at the cave entrance.

"Just make sure to trade out with me," Nintai tells Bo after he reveals the lineup.

"I'm sorry, miss, I think I misheard you. You want to be in the lineup, too?" Yo stares disbelievingly. He thought she'd want as much beauty sleep as possible.

"Yes, that's what I meant when I said someone has to trade out with me eventually. Unless you prefer I take first watch and stay up all night without trading out at all?"

"Absolutely not," Mon-Mon declares. "A girl needs her beauty sleep and-"

"I don't do beauty sleep, perv."

"Don't mock me, or you'll go to hell!"

"Who's going to hell here," Yo criticizes.

The two of them then get into an argument over whether or not Mon-Mon acts like an actual monk. Nintai looks to Bo, raising her eyebrow. He assesses her quietly, then nods and goes to let Muneshige know that she'd be taking a shift as well. The two also decide that it'll be the very last one, and only if she wakes up on her own to take it.

Later on, as Nintai sleeps soundly and the shift is changing, Ittosai and Bo have a short conversation about the girl.

"She can't be normal," the blonde mutters, staring into the cave at her form.

"Drop it, Ittosai. Of course she's not normal, but she is also no danger to us."

Ittosai looks carefully at her form, looking for something, anything, that would mark her as a threat. The only thing out of place on her person was the blue pendant she wears. He'd remarked to himself on several occasions that she'd been talking to it.

"Really? What about her sanity?"

Bo chuckled, leaning against the entrance wall. "What about yours," he counters.

The glasses Ittosai wears shine in the light from the moon as he glares from behind them. Bo looks into the cave at the girl in question, thinking about what the blonde bodyguard had said. He'd seen her talking to the pendant as well. And although he trusts her, whether or not she's safe to keep around is becoming a worry to him. Bo doesn't want her to snap and turn on them without warning. It would cause everyone problems, especially in the current situation.

"If she wakes up, I'll try to talk to her," he mutters.

Ittosai looks at Bo, but says nothing. He figures that as long as the one with brains realizes the danger as well, the chances of something going wrong have gone down. With that last thought in mind, Ittosai walks into the cave to leave Bo to his shift and get some more sleep.

Another hour later, just as she had thought over and over before going to sleep, Nintai wakes up for a shift that technically doesn't exist. Of course, Bo has an excuse to cover why he'll stay up with her anyways. Sitting up from her spot, Nintai looks over to Sayori as she snores softly. _She's so much cuter when relaxed. I just hope I can get her home so she can stay that way, like before._

Standing up from her place on the ground, Nintai stretches her limbs before joining Bo at the entrance. She smiles at him as he looks back to check whose up. He turns his attention back to the outside as she closes the distance between them. The girl sits down just inside the entrance with him, a single question in her mind.

"Is something wrong with my pendant?" The man had looked at her for a moment, then focused on the pendant for another before turning back around.

"Was I that obvious?"

"You may not have moved your eyes, but I could tell your attention was in your peripheral vision instead," she says simply.

Bo chuckles to himself. "I guess I need more practice."

Nintai shakes her head, disagreeing. "I noticed because I'm used to that treatment. You did very well, and that's an understatement."

Bo turns back to her, reassessing her once more, before asking the question that's been on his mind since Ittosai had gone to bed an hour ago. "Why do you talk to that pendant?"

_Wow, that was a quick topic breach._ Nintai stares at the moon as she starts talking. "Have you ever noticed how the moon changes? How it slims and grows every month?"

"Please don't dodge the question."

"I'm not dodging it," she states simply. "I'm just starting the explanation. But there're a few things you have to understand first. And I'm also going to guess that you never planned to sleep once I woke up, right?"

Bo flinches at the piercing stare from her sapphire eyes. It was the one look he hadn't seen from her. "Alright, you caught me. And yes, I have noticed the moon's phases."

Nintai smiles softly and turns her gaze back to the moon. "Have you ever seen the changes in a pond, or in a field of rice? Or anywhere where you can see a reflection?"

"It's no different, regardless of how you view it," he comments.

"Not true. It's completely different because you're not actually looking at the moon. Actually, you look at the moon through a lens when staring at its reflection. Now tell me what you see when you look at a person."

Bo looks at Nintai critically. He can't see any way to get back to the question he'd asked. But he indulges the girl none the less.

"It depends on the person. Some people you can only see their outside, they're so good at hiding themselves."

Nintai smiles, her point reached. "Alright then, what about me? What did you think the first time you met me?"

Bo stops thinking for a few seconds, trying to process the question. Once it gets through, he tries to think up something that won't offend her. His first impression hadn't been very good, especially with the way she was dressed and how she'd avoided the question about her three still missing friends.

"No lying, now. That's not gonna get us anywhere in this discussion."

She catches him in mid thought and forces him toward the one answer he doesn't want to give. "My first impression wasn't very good, if you really want to know. I figured you were an enemy who'd caught the princess and her bodyguard and was attempting to drag them off to deal with them."

Nintai holds back a laugh. As dark as the thought is, she can't help but agree that a bodyguard is supposed to assume the worst in life and death situations.

"Let me guess. You then took into account the fact that I'd fought off the ninja leader, right?"

Bo nods, smiling at her insight. "Exactly right."

"Alright then. What do you think now? And this is purely out of curiosity, and not completely tied to the discussion at hand. Promise."

Bo chuckles. Amazing fighter or not, Nintai is still a girl and would naturally want to know what a boy thinks of her. He thinks for a second, collecting his thoughts, before diving into his opinion.

"You're an amazing fighter, and have the senses of a true tactician, which is no doubt why the ninja following us have avoided full contact so far. They've seen your skill, and have estimated your worth. In that sense, having you around is proving to be a great advantage…"

Nintai raises her eyebrow and nudges him. "Go on. What's the 'but'?"

Bo sighs, resigned to whatever fate comes next. "But, the way you act when you think no one is looking is a bit worrying."

"You mean when I talk to this pendant, right?"

Bo stares, surprised that she admitted it so easily, and nods.

"Alright then. Before I explain the answer to your question about it earlier, there's one more thing I want you to answer."

Bo thinks carefully and judges her stare. It's not piercing like earlier, when she'd sat down after noticing how he'd watched her walking out from the back of the cave. This stare was patient and unconcerned. She is merely waiting for his response to her statement. Praying that he can answer the next question without causing trouble, he nods.

"What exactly do you think of this pendant?"

She pulls it away from her chest and lets the stone rest in her hand. The moonlight shines of the blue gem set into the metalwork. Whatever materials had been used in the necklace's crafting were unfamiliar to Bo, and he could not identify them in any way. All in all, he could only think of a rather mundane answer.

"It's beautiful, but not all that extraordinary."

Nintai smiles brightly. "I know! But talking to it, regardless of whatever happens when I do, makes me feel better."

"So, it's just therapeutic, then?"

"Sort of."

Bo looks away, seeing no one in the cave had woken up nor moved toward the pair.

"Bo," Nintai laughs. "No one back there said anything."

The man looks back at her questioningly. "Then I guess it was just my imagination," he says slowly.

The girl shakes her head and pulls the string holding the pendant over her head, letting the entire thing sit in her hand. "I don't know his name, and I don't know where he's from, but I think you'll enjoy talking to him. Just be nice and don't mention his lack of a body, okay?"

"Yeah, I'm not too happy about how this happened, either," came the voice again.

Bo stares at the pendant held out to him as it glows a soft blue.

"Go on, Bo. Take it. I'm sure he'll be a lot more interesting to talk to right now. Plus, he can explain himself a lot better than I can."

With those words said, Nintai takes Bo's hand and sets the pendant in it. Then gets up and goes for a walk. Behind her, she can hear Bo talking more or less to himself as he examines the pendant. The voice she'd been talking to lately speaks back to him on every observation happily.

Soon, the voices are lost to her ears as she works her way back to the hot spring not far from the cave the group had found. Steam is still rising from it and the ground looks as undisturbed as it had the night before, as if the eight people had never found it.

Nintai lifts the hem of her kimono and steps in, sitting on the edge so her legs can soak. Sitting there, listening to the noises of the trees and bugs around her, Nintai thinks about taking another bath before the others wake up and start moving again. The idea is appealing, and she knows that Bo doesn't intend to go to sleep until night; he'd set things up so she could only take a shift if she'd woken up, after all.

The sentiment is sweet and all, but it still bugs her that they don't think she can be responsible enough to wake everyone if the ninja appear. As her mood starts to sour a little, she decides on taking that bath after all, and stands back up to remove her kimono.

She drops the sash and dress next to the spring and slides into the water, making only small splashing noises. Leaning against the rocks behind her, she enjoys the soothing heat. Her thoughts drift to the three teenagers back home and how they're doing, or if they're even aware that she and Sayori are missing. After all, this place had managed to introduce five new variables to itself with no problem; not to mention remove three of said variables in front of six of the original ones.

And how can she not? This place isn't necessarily new to her. Nintai is well aware of the historical references all around her, and that they all have been mentioned at one point or another in one of the many history classes she'd been forced into taking over her scholastic career. This place, she knows, could very well be the past, and the two girls could very well be messing everything up.

That story exists for a reason, right? The princess was meant to die, no matter what. So why bring Sayori and Nintai back to change the girl's fate and deny destiny its course? It makes no real sense. Because of the two girls, the future that has been their home and their world could very well have disappeared and been replaced by a planet of aliens with webbed feet and hands.

She shakes her head to clear her thoughts away. She needs to focus on saving her friend now, the consequence later. With the area quiet, Nintai finds herself wishing she never had to get out. But she's no fool, and after a half hour of soaking, the girl stands and gets out, redressing herself in her kimono.

Another noise comes to her ears; extremely close and familiar to her senses. It's the sound of water moving. But, she'd already gotten out of the water, so it isn't her. Quietly, Nintai sneaks toward the other side of the spring to see a half-naked man with long silver hair tied up close to the end. The ninja she'd been avoiding was stripping to get into the waters of the hot spring.

* * *

* : I made up this word myself, so yes it is weird and uknown.


	6. What's the Plan?

Nintai, hiding behind a tree, is holding her hand over her mouth, muffling the sounds of her breathing. The man in the water has yet to notice that she's standing just inside the tree line and is washing someone else's blood from his skin. Nintai sneaks another look to see if he's noticed her yet, but is relieved when she realizes he hasn't.

Turning back to the greenery around her, she listens for the sounds of other ninja, hearing none of the telltale noises. _So, he's by himself? But, where could the other ninja be?_ Her thoughts turn to the others in the cave. If the ninja were smart, they'd know she was here, not there. Not only that, but they'd have reported it to their leader by now as well.

So, by deductive reasoning, Nintai believes that the man in the hot spring hasn't been reported to about her whereabouts. _That, or they hadn't watched us overnight. I mean, Bo said he thinks they're afraid of me, right?_ With that thought, a new line of reasoning forms. Not to mention it makes more sense.

Nintai had noticed a lack of presence from the ninja the night before. When she'd woken up, and sat outside with Bo, she'd felt completely relaxed, not guarded and wary, so they couldn't have been watching them at the time, either. And during her entire walk to the hot spring, she'd felt no sense of danger or hostility toward her surroundings.

All these observations have led her to believe that none of the enemy ninja knew she was not in the cave with the others. Not only that, she realizes that she also left the only hope of her getting away from this man without being noticed in Bo's hands. The blue pendant, which was the only way she'd fought in the last battle, is still in the girly man's hands, being examined from every angle possible.

That leaves Nintai with only one option. To stay as still as possible and hope the ninja leader doesn't notice her presence.

* * *

Bo flips the pendant over in front of the others. Sayori stares at it nervously. She's been aware of the voice that emits from the pendant from time to time. She'd heard it when Jinnai, Rin and Sei had left into the green glow that had replaced the setting sun. Now, here it is, talking to everyone as if there was no problem whatsoever.

"Look, all I'm saying is that Nintai doesn't need Blondie hounding her about how she acts. After all, if anyone here's insane, it's him."

Ittosai glares maliciously at the necklace. "Excuse me? Who here got stuck inside a little girl's necklace, huh? Last I checked, I still have an actual body to use."

"Not cool, man! Not cool!"

He'd said himself when the others left that the entire group knowing he could talk would be a problem. So why all of a sudden does he want to get to know everyone.

"Alright, whatever, psychopath," it says contemptuously. "I've made my decision, anyways."

The entire group stares at the glowing stone, all thinking the same thing. Yo is the one who speaks up. "What do you mean? What decision?"

"Nintai is falling for a guy. I'm not sure which one of you it is, but she's still falling for someone. And I'm not letting my little girl chase down a psychopath, a perv, a drag queen, a little kid, an old man, or a little kid. None of you are good enough for her."

Bo raises his eyebrow. "Your 'little girl?' Who exactly are you again?"

The pendant remains silent but still glowing. Only the smallest sound comes from it. "Crap."

"I don't believe it," Yo states blandly. "Nintai's been carrying her dad around in a pendant?"

Sayori stares at the pendant in amazement. Not only could it talk, but the tactician inside has revealed himself to be Nintai's father. Sayori realizes the implications of this; a man who is supposed to be back home with her friends is trapped within a pendant and talking to his daughter as if he was no more than another teenager.

Whatever this guy says, though, Sayori is well aware that Nintai's father is extremely cautious about how he treats and approaches his daughter. This man trapped within the stone can tell the others whatever he likes, but Sayori will never believe him to be her best friend's dad. Not unless Nintai herself tells her otherwise.

* * *

Nintai, still hiding behind the tree, can't help but turn bright red from the circumstances she's in. No matter what happens, her friends are all at the cave where they'd spent the night, and only Bo knows she'd walked off in the direction of the hot spring. Not to mention that dawn has only just broken and the sky is still pretty much dark.

Any way she looks at it, Nintai knows she's stuck where she is until the man either leaves or notices her. And what's worse is that her heart is beating like crazy from the stress of panic, embarrassment and the many complications that could take place from here. Mixed with the sounds of water splashing, Nintai is almost certain she'll have a heart attack and die.

_Stop it! Stop it! Stop it! Think of something else!_ Nothing came to mind but the build of the ninja's body. Well-muscled, toned and trained for battle with her and her friends and anyone else who gets in his way. The only thing she didn't get a good look at was his face. The thought of trying to sneak a peek again crosses her mind before she can stop it.

Last time she saw him, he had been wearing a mask over the majority of his face. But his eyes were easy to remember; one brown eye, the right, and a yellow one, the left. Along with a scar over the left eye as well. Thinking about how he'd glared at her makes her face pale and her heart tremble. Whether or not it's fear she's feeling, Nintai doesn't want to know.

She hears the sounds of water and clothes and immediately recognizes that he's out of the water and getting dressed. Covering her mouth tightly with her hands, she locks herself in place and thinks of something else. What comes to mind is her apartment, her three friends still lying on the floor, sleeping, and she and Sayori stretched out on the small couches in her living room. The thought calms her breathing and heart rate.

When she opens her eyes and ears again, she hears and sees nothing but trees and bugs. Casting around her mind for some sort of sign that the ninja had left, Nintai comes up with nothing. The only idea she can come up with is to look around the tree to see if he's still there. Taking a deep breath, she does exactly that.

On the other side of the tree is, of course, the hot spring. In the water is still the rocky divider the girls had used to separate themselves from the boys. But no sign of the ninja is anywhere to be seen.

She turns back around and leans against the tree, releasing the breath she'd been holding. Once more, she listens to the sounds around her. The bugs were being noisy and birds had finally started to wake up. On the wind comes the sound of a battle, and Nintai snaps out of her thoughts.

Not waiting for any more confirmation of what's happened, she breaks into a sprint and heads in the direction of the cave where she'd left everyone else. _Pay attention. Pay attention. Pay attention._ She refuses to think about the predicament occurring with her heart.

* * *

The six bodyguards are holding off several groups of ninja all at once. Sayori is hiding inside the cave, using the darkness inside and a large rock to conceal her form next to the wall. Although her life is currently in danger, Sayori can think of nothing but her friend who had walked off earlier that morning.

According to Bo, the girl would be the main target in the next attack. With her away from the group, she'd be easy to kill. And since the blue pendant is currently in her lap, she has no way to defend herself if she is caught by some rogue team of ninja or a wild animal. At least, that's what Sayori believes.

The sound of swords clashing just outside the cave entrance is becoming too much for her to handle, and any minute now she feels like she might actually break down and start crying. Her panic was starting to take over, and if she lets that happen she would putting everyone in danger, she just knows it.

"Darn it, Jin, don't be stupid! If you're going to swing your sword, aim at the enemy, not me," Yo yells in frustration.

Jin tries to counter the comment, but is immediately engaged by another ninja. Without anyone realizing it, a single man dressed in black slips around the side and into the mouth of the cave. Quickly and quietly, he scans the inside, taking extreme interest in the rock with cloth sticking out from the side.

Before he can get close, though, an elbow digs itself into the back of his neck, sending him to the ground. Sayori jumps, ready to scream, when she sees the person standing behind the unconscious body.

"Ane!"

Nintai smiles at the girl and holds her hand out. "Pendant please!"

And with that, the blue pendant is placed back around the lotus haired girl's neck, right where it should be. Her pendant back in place, Nintai places her hands on Sayori's shoulders and pushes her back into a sitting position. With one more smile to Sayori, she turns to the cave entrance and heads back out.

Once outside the cave, Nintai scans the battle in front of her. The silver haired ninja she'd seen earlier is nowhere to be seen, and she thanks some random god for that while he cheeks flush a slight pink. A deep breath and consultation with her pendant get Nintai into fighting mode and into battle.

Flicking from one enemy to the next, she manages to even out the battle without any guidance from the pendant. Voices are lost on her, and the bodyguards back out to protect just the cave entrance itself. The only one still fighting is Ittosai, and that's because he's a psychotic nutjob. With just the two of them, they manage to force the ninja into retreat.

"Where the hell did you go?" Ittosai is the closest, and therefore has the first question.

Nintai stares at him blankly. "A walk. Where else?" She doesn't want to mention the hot spring and bring up the memory of the ninja leader. Her heart just isn't ready for that yet.

Bo is the next to speak up, as he cuts in between the two to separate them. "And why did it take you so long to get back?"

_Don't say hot spring. Don't say hot spring. Don't say hot spring._ "I got caught by a few other ninja. So sorry I didn't feel like adding to the numbers here."

After that remark, she steps away from the others, who each have their own question, and looks at Sayori. The girl smiles at her, understanding the concerned look on her face. Nintai had been worried the entire run back. Plus, Sayori had nearly been killed, and would have been had she not been saved by her friend.

"Don't worry. I'm fine. I think the guy in the cave is the one who needs attention right now."

Nintai smiles, relieved about her friend and glad she made it in time. She then turns back to the guys. "As much fun as standing here, waiting for another attack would be, we need to get going."

Sayori immediately follows Nintai without a word. The others, seeing no hope for argument, follow as well. The girls, a little ways ahead, keep quiet as they walk down the path. The boys, keeping their distance, talk amongst themselves.

"I don't like it. There's no way she went for a walk and just happened to come back at the end of the fight," Ittosai growls.

Bo shakes his head. "She didn't come back at the end of the fight. She came back and ended the battle. There's a difference. But… I have to agree that she is hiding something."

"Well, maybe she is, maybe she isn't," Yo yawns, "but one way or another, we need to get rid of her!"

"What makes you say that, Yo?" Muneshige, walking closer to the girls, slows his pace to rejoin the other men. "She's been nothing but helpful."

"Maybe so," Mon-Mon says thoughtfully. "Then again, she's been with us for quite a while. Maybe it's time we send her off to find those friends of hers that disappeared."

All six of the men thought back to when the three teenagers had disappeared into thin air. It was definitely unnatural, unless they were ninja themselves, and she had simply avoided the topic by using their reactions against them. Not only that, but the princess hadn't seemed worried either.

"Why would she still be with us if she has her own things to get done?" Jin stares at the back of Nintai's head.

Ittosai scoffs. "Probably waiting for a sense of security before her leader kills us off properly."

Five men stop moving and stare at Ittosai, each face seeming more skeptical than the last. Bo immediately slides into defensive mode and starts listing off reasons why that's not possible, let alone true. And once he's done, Ittosai has already stopped paying attention to the conversation and everyone's moving again.

Ahead of them, Nintai is smiling to herself. _Thank you, Bo._ She then begins humming to herself. She misses her mp3 player greatly right now; it'd kept her from boredom before, but it would be impossible for her to use it here anyways. So she sticks to the next best thing and hums away with her eyes on the track.

Next to her, Sayori thinks happily about home and how often Nintai hummed the songs on the radio in time to them. Looking over at her friend, she can tell that the girl feels rather happy and relaxed at the moment. Praying for it to last, Sayori turns her attention back in front of her.

Another hour later, Muneshige calls for a stop. Gathered around in a circle, with Ittosai sitting a few feet away from the collective, the boys talk about their next move. Several things are considered, including returning to the main road from here. Muneshige shoots that idea down, but Nintai continues developing the idea as she stands off to the side.

Sayori sits against a tree, resting peacefully. Thinking about the pendant on Nintai's neck, she pulls out a green one of her own and plays with it. While her thoughts speed off into various directions, taking twists and turns every chance that occurs, the others find themselves at an indecision.

"Separating is a good idea and all," Bo says. "But doing so now could cause more problems than solutions."

"He's right," Yo speaks seriously for once. "We're not exactly close to the castle yet, so splitting up would make the princess an easier target."

Muneshige drops the idea, but the group agrees it could be useful at a later date. Mon-Mon, believing himself a great tactician, suggests that they slip through the upper mountains. The idea is immediately rejected.

"You just want to the girls to get exhausted so you can carry them again," Yo mutters. "Pervert monk."

"Don't mock me, or hell is your only option!"

"Enough! Jin, don't you have an idea?"

Bo, although he'd made it clear he was talking to Jin, was given no response from the red head. The boy stares intensely at Nintai, whose been watching Sayori while the guys talked. In his head, she'd be the best to ask, especially with the tactician hanging around her neck.

"Why don't we ask Nintai?" Simple, but shocking to the others. "She does have that tactician around her neck.

They hadn't considered her a viable source of inspiration, nor the pendant around her neck. Not to mention that she still hasn't noticed that Jin had mentioned her. Bo, watching her for a couple seconds, realizes she deep in thought, and that would probably mean she has a plan going.

"Nintai," he calls.

She jumps and looks at Bo. His face seems a bit too serious to her, and she notices everyone else staring at her intently as well. Ittosai is the only one ignoring her. Finally she just shrugs at them.

"You've got no ideas at all?" Bo looks skeptical as Nintai bites down on her lip.

"Well, it's not that I've got none…"

Muneshige steps forward. "Well, what is it? Anything at this point would be useful."

Nintai assesses the man carefully before resigning herself; it's the only thing she's got. "Take the main road."

Everyone stares at her in disbelief. Even Ittosai, who'd been ignoring absolutely everything except the sounds of the trees around them, had looked over at her. They all have the same expression; their faces say 'are you stupid?'

"Look, I know it'll turn her into more of a target, but running around with only the sun to guide us is an even worse idea. And Yo is right! We're nowhere near the castle!"

"That's why we need to avoid the main road!" Muneshige yelling at Nintai. This is bound to get worse before it gets better.

"You said it yourself, Muneshige. Any idea is useful at this point." He clams up instantly. "Now then. If we take the main road, we'll not only be able to travel faster, but we can slip into a town and hide for a few days. Like that, the ninja won't be able to keep tabs on us. Too many people, too many places. They'll be unsure.

"I will agree with you, Muneshige, that letting the princess go around dressed like that and acting like herself would cause a problem on the main road. But that's the thing, she won't be. I'll be taking her place."

Sayori, who's been listening to the conversation without much worry, looks up with horror on her face. If her friend takes her place, then she would be in danger instead of herself. That meant the ninja and everything else that could go wrong with this plan would get Nintai killed in the princess's place.

"We can't do that," she declares. "I refuse to let you get killed in my place."

Nintai stares at Sayori. The stare lacks emotion and sympathy. Although Nintai knows why Sayori is objecting, she simply cannot let her get in the way. Friend or not, she's causing a problem.

"Listen very carefully, princess." Sayori notes the icy note in Nintai's voice with despair and fear. "You are getting back to your home, whatever it takes, and if, only if, I do manage to get killed, you are not to crumple up on the spot and act like a spoiled brat. Got it?"

"Nintai! Be respectful to the princess!" Muneshige and Nintai start glaring daggers at each other.

Sayori, reeling from the treatment she'd just been given from her friend, finds the hidden meaning in the words she'd just heard. 'I'm not gonna die, you're not gonna argue, and we're going home together.' Although the hidden meaning makes her happy, Sayori still wishes that her friend would reconsider her plan.

"Alright, that's enough, you two," Bo scolds as he steps between Nintai and Muneshige. "I can expect rash and emotional actions from you, Nintai. But you, Muneshige?"

The other man looks at the ground, his cheeks tinged pink from shame. Bo, after a few more seconds of staring at him, turns his attention away from Muneshige and back to Nintai.

"Now then. Although you're plan is good, it still doesn't account for what happens with the princess. Where do you expect her to go if you replace her? She can't pretend to be you; you're a fighter and what's more, you're a good one. The second a battle starts, she'll be the target and she'll die instantly."

"That's why we move as fast as possible on the main road and reach the next city before the ninja reach us again," Nintai states with a hint of boredom.

"And if they do catch us again?"

Nintai smiles mischievously. "Then Ittosai gets to have twice the fun."

The blonde smiles at her words. _Having the psychopath with us isn't such a problem after all._ Nintai stares Bo in the eyes, waiting for his next issue with her plan, but it never came. Muneshige says nothing about the plan because it keeps his princess safe and keeps Ittosai in check. For now, that keeps him satisfied.

The others who had watched her as the plan was explained stared, worry etched in their faces. She'd never spoken like that. Something had snapped all of a sudden. Nintai notices their faces and gives a bright smile, or at least the brightest she can. In the back of her mind, she noticed it, too; not once had she ever spoken to anyone but her father that way. But the way she'd talked had reminded her of him.

_It's no big deal. I just need to get her to the town and I can get myself back in order. And hopefully away from this place._


	7. Ninja VS Not-so-Ninja, Whose Plan Wins?

Nintai, dressed in the kimono that Sayori had been wearing for the last few days, steps out from behind her tree. Dressed in that particular kimono, she looks more like a queen married to the emperor than a princess. But they still hadn't fixed her hair yet. The problem with that was that she didn't have anywhere near long enough hair, so they planned on putting a cloak over her to hide it.

Sayori steps out from behind her tree next. In the servant's kimono, she seems almost normal to Nintai, which almost makes her forget what's going on. The girl's hair had been cut to length and bleached out with ease. What exactly she and Bo had used, however, Nintai does not ask. After taking a few seconds to check each other over, the girls turn to the others.

The boys, who have waited patiently for the two to switch clothes, turn to look over them. Bo smiles, impressed with the switch, while behind him Jin stares open mouthed at Sayori. The girl blushes a slight pink. Ittosai takes one look at the two, then turns disinterestedly away, probably making fun of them in his head. Muneshige and Mon-Mon eye each girl critically, although Nintai gets the feeling Mon-Mon is doing so for less honorable reasons. Yo jumps up after a few seconds of staring and hugs them both.

"You're both adorable! I wish we didn't have to take you back!"

Muneshige pulls the boy off them and the girls fix their clothes. In addition to the switch, the plan had been modified so each girl has their own protection; Sayori had pulled Bo to the side and insisted. Jin and Yo will protect Sayori, ignoring anything that befalls Nintai as they walk. Mon-Mon and Bo will protect Nintai, ignoring anything that befalls Sayori as they walk. Muneshige and Ittosai are to act as point and rear guards.

"I call rear guard," was all that Ittosai had said when Bo had revealed the modified version of Nintai's plan.

"Why exactly can't I protect the princess," Muneshige had sighed.

Nintai had looked at him with pity. "Because that would make it too obvious that she's herself. Think about it from the enemies shoes. Who would be closest to the princess? Definitely the guy that's supposed to be protecting her. Therefore, you need to not protect her directly. That's why Bo and I agreed on Jin and Yo."

The man agreed with her logic then, and even now, looking at the two girls, he can still see her point. But that doesn't stop him from wishing he could protect his princess himself.

And with everything set, the group starts walking through the trees once more. Since they don't know if any ninja happen to be in the trees, Nintai was already wearing a cloak with the hood pulled up. It seemed rather strange to her when Yo pulled it out of thin air. Then again, plenty of weird things have happened to her since she got here.

In the back of her mind, Nintai is well aware of some other presence around her. But it seems impossible to her; the blue pendant is around Sayori's neck right now. They even went so far as to trade the pendants they wear. Yet, Nintai still feels like there's another person with her.

Shaking the feeling as her spine shivers suddenly, Nintai focuses on what's in front of her once more. It took much less time than she thought it would, and the main road appears before them. Muneshige stops just inside the tree line and looks back. Nintai and Sayori both nod and the man reluctantly continues out into the bright sunshine.

Once outside the dusk of the forest, Nintai realizes why her moods had shifted like crazy. It was the sunlight that she'd been so used to seeing disappear. With the reappearance of that wonderful brightness, she immediately felt happier. The smile across her face right now is bright and filled with joy.

Standing beside her, Sayori smiles as well, taking in the bright blue sky. It seems like forever to the two of them; an entire lifetime seems to have passed them by and they missed this sky during the entire journey. Bo and Yo tap their shoulders, pulling them from their personal worlds and the girls rush to get back into place.

Nintai, walks carefully, not used to the type of sandals she's wearing right now. Her thoughts are on how she should've kept on her shoes, but they had to switch outfits completely or risk something giving them away.

The steps the group takes are drowned out by the rest of the midday traffic. Horses pulling wagons or carts, people travelling by foot in either direction, even the occasional royal-looking transport speeds by on the side of the large highway. No doubt the pretentious people inside just don't want to see commoners as they drive themselves forward.

Nintai recognizes the movements of the land off to the side. The rise and fall of the grasses reminds her of the home that would stand her several years from now. Unfortunately, it also has a darker meaning. Even though they'd travelled so much in the last few days, they hadn't gotten very far away from the castle that they had escaped.

_Now that I think about it, I don't actually remember the names of the people after us. Or did I ever even know?_ This thought proves a nuisance, as she can't ask "Hey, guys? Who exactly is trying to kill us?" in the middle of a busy highway. _Definitely ask that. It won't bring any suspicion at all from those around us._

To take her mind off of the thoughts plaguing her, Nintai follows the flight of a single bird. What type, she has no idea, but it's clearly a rather large bird. She can tell it has an enormous wingspan as it turns around and around a far off tree. And not just any tree, but a tree that's grown past its peers.

The tree she now focuses on is several feet higher than the others, and turning pink from cherry blossoms. Sayori and Nintai look at each other as they realize they've both been focusing on it. Behind them, they hear Bo chuckle.

"Would you two like to see that tree before it starts blooming?"

They look over their shoulders and say together, "Really!? Can we!?"

The other boys hold back their laughter, and the two girls stare at one another for a few seconds before their giggling slips by their lips. Once they're closer, the group slips over to the side of the road, much to Ittosai's dismay, and head up a cleared path toward the tree. The girls, once the trunk was in sight, race each other up a small slope to the tree's base. There, they see a small shrine.

"Whoops," Sayori whispers.

"It's alright. Let's just kneel and pray. It's not like everyone who comes to this tree always leaves an offering."

"Yeah, sure; just don't ask it for money."

Nintai looks at the blue pendant around Sayori's neck, then behind her where the boys are gathered, looking at their surroundings.

"You've been really quiet. Usually you try to talk to me, um… her… a lot."

"Oh, um… I had a little mishap."

Sayori bites her lip, remembering the moments before the last ninja attack. The pendant had let it slip that not only could it talk, but that it believed itself to be Nintai's father. She doesn't believe this to be true, since the last time she'd seen the man, Nintai had kicked him out of her apartment, which he pays for.

She forces her thoughts to move on. Her disbelief wasn't the main problem here. She'd kept a secret about something important from her friend, regardless of the fact that it was an accident. Feeling the guilt, she tries to think of a way to broach the subject.

Nintai grabs the pendant and pulls it over Sayori's head. Holding it in front of her, she glares, annoyed, at the stone as it glows a faint blue. The blue nags at something in the back of her mind; a distant memory she feels like she shouldn't have.

"What did you do? Did you insult Bo or something?"

"You gave Bo that thing on purpose?"

Nintai looks at Sayori and nods. "He was worried that I was going insane for some reason, so I gave it to him so he could look at it. The two seemed to have hit it off pretty well, so I didn't think I was needed. That's why I went for a walk that morning."

Sayori looks at the girl with annoyance. She'd been worried about how Bo had gotten ahold of the pendant in the first place, even if she hadn't realized she'd been worried.

"Alright, then. As long as Ittosai hadn't stolen it."

"Ittosai? What's he got to do with this? Don't tell me he looked at it, too!"

Sayori slaps her hands over her mouth. That was supposed to be something Nintai didn't find out until they got home. Her friend glares at her. Sayori looks down at her feet, removing her hands and hanging her head.

"Who exactly knows about this stupid tactician?"

"Hey!"

"Everyone," Sayori manages to squeak.

"That's not very nice, you know!"

"Be quiet, stupid," Nintai growls at the stone. It ceases any sound but remains glowing.

Nintai's face is pale. Everyone knows about the strange thing that's been hanging around her neck. She'd wanted it kept hidden until she knew more about it, or had gotten home, but that plan has flown out the window. The next thing catches everyone off guard.

"Circle up, everyone! We need to talk," she calls out calmly.

After a few moments of confusion, the boys join the girls, gathering in a loose circle. For some reason, even Ittosai the wall flower was among the group. Yo, Jin, and Bo are all staring perplexed. Muneshige and Mon-Mon seem unworried. The wall flower doesn't even try to feign interest.

"Alright then. Since no one decided to tell me that everyone knew until now," Nintai states blandly, "I figure we should at least get the idiot's opinion on the plan before we keep going."

Holding the pendant up, Nintai stares at it as it starts to glow a little more brightly than usual. "I don't really have much of a choice in this, do I?"

The disembodied voice surprises no one, confirming to Nintai that they'd all heard it speak before. Changing her thought's direction, she glares at the pendant. "No."

She hears a sigh, then the pendant starts a long anecdote on the strategy the group had decided on. Halfway through, Jin seemed like his head was going to explode, Yo was dozing off while standing, and Bo was barely keeping up, which says something. Muneshige and Mon-Mon are daydreaming because, like Jin and Yo, they'd gotten lost somewhere toward the beginning. Ittosai was just watching the glow flicker from the pendant.

"Alright, stupid. That's enough."

"Eh?" The pendant's glow subsides a bit as the voice falls silent.

"Since Bo seems to be the only one who understood any of that, why don't we just let him explain it in stupid people words instead?" Nintai slips the pendant back under over Sayori's head.

"Sorry I don't speak stupid," came the last remark from the pendant before it stops glowing completely.

Bo, seeing it go dark, is once more interested in the piece, but knows better than to ask to see it again with Nintai staring at him. She's waiting for him to explain what he'd understood form the necklace's opinion. Unfortunately, that happens to be very little.

"I'm afraid the only thing I can say on the matter is that, although he approves of the plan in general, he doesn't think we should've had you two trade places. I'm not quite sure why he believes that, but that's the basic idea that I got from it."

Nintai stares at him for a moment, then nods. Turning to the others, she stares at them instead, noticing that the majority were still off in their own little worlds; Ittosai was the only one listening. _Alright then. Time for a wakeup call._

"PAY ATTENTION!"

The four bodyguards snap from their daydreaming, turning bright red from embarrassment as Nintai continues her stare. Shaking her head, she merely turns around and goes to kneel at the shrine. Still standing in embarrassment and shock, the four bodyguards who had been daydreaming look at one another.

Bo chuckles quietly and walks over to Nintai. Behind him, the others spread out. Yo and Jin stick to Sayori as she walks around the tree, marveling at its height. Mon-Mon and Muneshige are off to the side, watching the entire area and talking about what they'd been daydreaming. Ittosai has lied down off on his own, as much of a lone wolf as always.

"You know, you can't blame them."

Nintai looks at Bo, trying to his blank expression. "Although you are technically right, you're still wrong about his opinion." Bo raises an eyebrow to her and she continues. "It's not that what you said is wrong, it's that you don't have any idea about why he's upset over me switching places.

"Mind telling me your real theory on that one? Or am I to be left out of the loop again?"

Bo sighs and reluctantly lets her in on the secret. He recounts the words that the pendant hand spoken the day she'd left it in his hands. Everything, from the insults shot at Ittosai to the small piece of knowledge he'd let slip.

"I can tell you with ease that that's not my father."

"Oh?" Bo looks at her with interest. "I don't think anyone besides a father would call a woman his 'little girl,' do you?"

"Sure, whatever. Anyways, remind me of something. Who are we running from again? The only person that comes to mind when I think of the enemies we face has long, silver hair and a yellow eye. Oh, and a scar."

Bo claps his hand over his mouth, and Nintai sees his shoulder shaking. She's silent for a moment, then opens her mouth.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm a real comedian... He's alive and well, by the way, with a body all his own. Whatever the guy trapped in that necklace thinks, he can keep dreaming. I've already got a disappointment in my family; I don't need another."

With that, Nintai rises from her spot in front of the shrine and calls out to everyone that it's time to go. She leaves no space for Bo to pry into the disappointment that is her father. Even if she does wish to discuss it, talking about it now could only cause trouble for everyone.

While everyone gets back into order, Nintai feels the eyes of someone on her. Looking up into the tree that's only just started to turn pink, her face pales. No doubts in her mind, Nintai shoves Sayori forward and yells at Muneshige.

"It's failed! Get to running!"

Dropping form the trees, ninja attempt to surround the group, but fail miserably thanks to Nintai's instincts. Sayori's last thought as both Jin and Muneshige grab her wrists is about the blue pendant around her neck. Knowing that not having it could get her friend killed, she shakes off Munshige's hand and, as she runs with Jin to the forest edge, pulls the pendant over her head.

"Nintai! This way!"

And with all the strength in her arm, she chucks the necklace as far as she can. Nintai, who'd just slammed her palm into a ninja's nose, sees the blue gleam in her peripheral vision and moves to catch it.

All around her, confusion is evident. The only thing she hadn't seen yet was the appearance of the leader. _Shouldn't he be here, too?_ Dropping into a slide, Nintai rams her foot into the ankle of a ninja and stops just beneath the pendant as it drops back to earth. The necklace lands with a thump into Nintai's hand and she rises to her feet.

Slipping the pendant over her neck, she remembers the green one underneath her clothes. _I'll get it back to Sayori later._ Then she hears the laughter. Cruel and excited at once; the man with silver hair leans against the tree the group had stopped to look at, a gleam of joy in his yellow eye.

"Crap."

Nintai looks past him to see Bo and Ittosai knocking down a few more ninja before disappearing into the trees. Once they disappear, the ninja in the area stop chasing after them and turn toward the only one left. Their reason for attacking becomes apparent to Nintai. In her head, she's berating herself for her own ignorance.

_I'm their target. They wanted me alone… And I'd walked right into their hands… I'm such an idiot!_

"Please tell me you know how to get me out of this," she mumbles under her breath as she reaches up to clutch at the blue pendant once again resting against her chest. It doesn't respond, even slightly

She doesn't even notice the movement behind her before the pain in her head and the darkness that follows her plea. But she does notice one thing. Someone strong picking her up in a princess carry and walking off, holding her gently. _Daddy? Why are you here?_

_ A smile plays across the figure's face. The little girl being carried looks into the smile above her in despair. The bond she used to share with this person, whoever it is, is long gone, destroyed by something she cannot, and will not, remember. Looking ahead of them, the girl sees another figure, more desolate and depressing, as if it were being tortured just by standing._

_ Immediately, the little girl starts to struggle, wanting to stay as far from the horrific thing as possible. But the figure holding onto her tightens its grip on her, keeping her in its arms. The little girl, unable to resist as she's too weak, closes her eyes tightly, unable to look as she's too scared._

_ Whatever she feels next is lost to her as her surroundings brighten and change._


	8. The Monster's Form

It takes only one mistake to ruin everything for someone. The mother simply had to give birth and it was already ruined. The thing that she'd allowed to grow inside her was now free of the bonds that held it. When the woman saw what it was, she'd screamed her lungs out, to the point that she nearly lost her voice.

After a few weeks of recuperating in an ICU ward, the woman was transferred to a mental hospital, where the man often visited after work to cheer her up. He'd always bring a different bouquet of flowers, and the colors that slowly filled the room had given her some form of hope for the world.

She wasn't necessarily insane. Nor did she have any disease of the mind. What she'd seen on the day that her child had been born merely reminded her of something she had worked hard never to see in her life. A birthmark had been on the infant's left shoulder blade. Its shape forever burned into her memory from years and years of abuse.

Shaped like a blade, the child's birthmark had aroused repressed memories from the past that its mother never wanted to remember. Even when in the kitchen, the woman had trouble with knives of any sort, even the butter knife. Her scars all across her body were a testament to the suffering she'd gone through.

So then, this woman, who was not insane but merely abused into a traumatic state, never once held her child when the nurses brought it in, or when the man she loved tried to hand it to her. She always pushed it away, saying that monsters would only contaminate her further.

With no hope of reaching his loved one, the man took the child and attempted to raise her himself. But no matter what age the girl was, the woman refused to acknowledge the existence of the child. A few years after the child's birth, the woman dies, leaving her husband, child, parents, friends and the rest of the world with one last warning.

"That thing… that monster… that I let grow with me… must never know emotions like we humans do. Allowing it to have the ability to feel joy or exhilaration will only give it the ability to kill off anything good in this world."

And so she passed, with her four year old child just outside the room, wondering where the monster that the woman had released was. When the man noticed his daughter at the door, a worried expression on her face, he smiled gently and went over to her. Without a second thought, her picked her up and carried her off in her arms.

The last thing he wanted his little girl to see was his wife's corpse. What he'd thought at that time was that he'd need help raising the girl. Immediately he thought about what kind of woman he wanted around his child, and soon joined online sights in hopes of finding a girl that could fill the role of a mother.

He didn't think of his happiness in the matter at all. In fact, the first person he found to help with his daughter was not recommended off some sight. A young girl in her sophomore year of high school had been putting up posters advertising her and her friends as babysitters.

The thought of a babysitter or nanny had never crossed the man's mind, and he immediately asked the girl if she would come meet his daughter at his house. Since he'd been heading to work and had left his precious child with his sister, he gave the girl the address of the house and called his relative right at the corner with the high schooler watching.

At the time, he hadn't noticed the admiration in the girl's eyes, which was the only reason she even agreed to go over a mile away from where they were standing to meet the little girl that inspired a father to act without shame. And all for that little girl's sake.

Often times the girl picked up the child from the same relative's house, taking the adorable kid anywhere she wanted, assuming it was close enough for a teenager and a six year old to walk to. And even more often, the girl always disappeared right when the man got home so he would be unable to give her any form of compensation.

The little girl would always pull at his pants pocket and say that the teenager told her to tell him that she was doing it because the little girl was so cute. And because the man already has his hands full. That simple act of kindness from a girl at the age of selfishness and greed was enough to give the man great hope for his daughter's future.

After all, if a simple high school kid could see what he saw in his child, then why can't everyone else that comes across her?

The little girl grew and grew, and at the age of nine, she was social diamond. She'd perfected how to gain the attention of others and capture their hearts with a simple smile. Every turn she took gave her new opportunities in life as her personality and intellect developed.

Proud of his daughter's progress, the man had started to talk about her to the other guys at work. All the men there were impressed by the stories; even more so when 'bring your child to work' day came around once more. The little girl was so adorably dressed and so perfectly behaved that the adults in the office thought she was a midget actor.

The women gathered around her, taking pictures of her soft smile as she sat in her father's office chair, hands on her knees with small temporary tattoos covering her arms. The men in the office had started taking bets on how she'd turn out as an adult, and trying to call dibs on whose son would marry the kid when she was of age.

Eventually the man's boss had ordered both the man and the little girl to go home; the girl was just too distracting to the other workers. With the orders coming from his boss, the man had no choice but to take the day off and walk around with his daughter.

Of course the man had no qualms with this; he loved to see his daughter playing on the equipment with all the other children. Her smile was always brightest when he pushed her on the swings, and sometimes even more so when she let go of the swing's chains to jump from the seat. Her landing in the sand were always perfect and she always stuck them.

A perfect daughter for a man who prayed for nothing more than her happiness.

Then came a day that wasn't so happy. He'd watched as a new face walked into his boss's office. When the door had closed behind him, the man had assumed it was just a regular meeting with a building administrator, albeit with an annoying new one. Two hours later, just as he cleared up his desk from the day's work, his boss had called him into the office.

Another thirty minutes later, he'd started clearing his desk from the last 15 years of work. All his pictures of his daughter and late wife were stacked together and rubber banded before being put in his bag. The few personal objects that weren't pictures were a clay figurine from an art class when the child had entered first grade and a wedding ring he no longer wore.

Just as he exited the building, his mood a little sour, but nothing seeing his smiling daughter couldn't fix, he saw a woman he'd recently started dating. She had the perfect build and the perfect attitude to be a mother figure for his daughter. The girl knew she was a girl, but the way she acted suggested a more boyish attitude was forming.

With a smile on his face and an unsuspecting attitude toward the woman, he walked right up to the woman saying hello. Her expression immediately made his drop. When he'd asked what was wrong, she immediately replied that he was wrong and dumped him on the spot.

A few former coworkers had stood by and watched as she insulted him and returned a key to him; the key to his house that he'd given her a week ago. Without a word, they took him out of the building and dropped his things in his car. But before he could get in the driver's seat and go get his adorable little Nintai, the disappointment of a father had been dragged by the arm to a nearby bar for drinks.

When he woke up the next morning, he'd been lying on his couch, his daughter's book bag in his arms, with no recollection of what he'd done the night before. Wanting to see his daughter sleeping face, he got up and walked toward her bedroom. It was a mess.

The bed was torn to pieces and the shades were smashed and bent. The dresser drawers were pulled from their places and tossed all over, some broken into component pieces. The mirror he'd bought her for her last birthday was shattered on the bedpost. Her music box, which he always wound up for her before she went to sleep, laid on the floor, broken into several pieces with the inner mechanism completely demolished.

All of this he took in at once, along with another important fact. On the wall was the single sentence, the single reason he didn't let his daughter stay near her dead mother when she died in that mental ward.

In a blue color was painted on the wall above his little Nintai's bed, "A monster's only happiness is killing what's good in this world."

* * *

"Where are we?"

A twelve year old Nintai, fed up with her father's disturbances, looks around the clearing the two stand in. Everything seems like the mountain normally does; greenery everywhere and bugs chirping as the day wears on.

Her father smiles at her briefly before turning the sapling he'd just placed in the ground. "I want you to name this tree, dear."

"Don't call me that."

Ever since her aunt had been arrested three years ago, Nintai has been devoid of emotion towards almost everything except her father. And even then, only toward the names he calls her. Nintai thinks over names as she stares at the sapling.

"What kind of tree is it?"

"A cherry blossom," her father says simply. "I know it won't bloom any time soon, but it'll be nice to have something that can't judge you to talk to."

Nintai looks at her father, the blank stare still stuck to her face. Behind them, another girl, much older than Nintai, walks into the clearing. She's been Nintai's babysitter since she was young, and has taken care of her up until about two years ago. Wearing a dress the color of cherry blossoms, Nami stands proudly, staring at the sapling with adoration in her eyes.

"Well, did she name it yet?"

Nintai's father shakes his head. "Still thinking one up."

"No I'm not," Nintai sighs. "Its name is Patience."

The two adults in the clearing look at Nintai as the first smile since her aunt had abducted her crosses her face. Happiness wasn't the cause of this smile. Nintai forced it to exist so the tree she stands in front of could see what she might look like if she ever is happy. Assuming, of course, that the girl could even rediscover what the word 'happy' meant.

* * *

Standing among flashing lights, Nintai watches as the orbs float around her. The white lights that attempt to light up the place she stands in are familiar to her. They bring a gentle smile to her face. She walks among them, feeling the dirt beneath her feet.

Looking at herself, she sees no details, just the general form, as if she's wearing a suit of skin-colored fabric. Staring at the ground beneath her feet, she sees no grass or bugs. Looking forward, there're no trees, bushes, buildings, nothing.

Instead, a blue glow along the horizon grows brighter. The color, unfamiliar to her, sends up warning signs in her mind. Wanting nothing but to run away from it, Nintai finds herself walking towards the glow as it continues to grow brighter and brighter.

Standing at the edge of a cliff, she looks down into an abyss of blue light. Among that light is another girl, looking up, with ruby colored eyes. Hair as black as night, skin as beautiful as diamonds. But the expression on her face reminded Nintai of a broken heart and a ruined soul.

"They're mine, right?"

The ruby-eyed girl stares vacantly at Nintai, then slowly nods her head.

"Why?"

The girl looks down and stares at the space below her. Shaking her head, she keeps staring at the void of light. Nintai turns back around to look at the white orbs she'd past. In comparison to the endlessness of the glow beneath the cliff, they seem like mere stars.

_Why are there so few of them? And what exactly are they?_ Looking back at the girl below her, she sees the ruby eyes locked onto her. Reaching a decision, she turns back to the orbs and walks toward one. Holding out her hand, she hesitates for only a second before touching its surface.

The place she sees next is her old bedroom, where she'd slept for the first nine years of her life. What she sees next brings back one of many things she wishes she hadn't lived through. Her father, standing in the light of her bedroom door, is drunk and upset about the day. Out of fear toward the man, Nintai covers her ears and locks her eyes shut.

After a few minutes of shaking and blocking it all out, Nintai opens her eyes to see not her father, but her mother standing in the corner. A young girl hides behind her, sapphire eyes piercing into Nintai's heart.

"You know you're wrong, dear. And no, you are no monster." Her mother looks at the wall about the bed. "But there's someone else that needs to be dealt with."

"If I'm not the monster, then who is?"

Her mother smiles sweetly, taking the hand of the little girl in the corner and leading her out of the room.

"I have to be the monster. No one else could be."

A brilliant white flash and the bedroom disappears, to be replaced by a single white orb as Nintai looks around the space. The orbs that once floated peacefully have disappeared and the only one left is starting to change shade.

Turning around, the bright blue glow is still there. Stepping next to the edge of the cliff, Nintai sees the girl with the ruby eyes once more. A thought pops into her head.

"You're not the monster, are you?"

Looking up at the question, the girl shakes her head. "No, I'm not. Do you know who is?"

Nintai had been about to ask the same question, and stumbles in her train of thought when asked it herself. She hasn't had enough time to think the problem over. A monster is supposed to have fangs and claws. It's supposed to be cruel and lack human morals. But nothing came to mind when she tries to think of the last time she saw a monster.

"No, I don't."

The girl bathed in blue smiles kindly and starts to float upwards, coming level with Nintai. The two notice the resemblance immediately; although the colors are off, the two are alike enough to be twins. Their builds are the same, and tiny scars from messing with scratches can be found in the same places on their bodies.

"Well, if you don't know, why don't you find out?"

Nintai looks at the floating girl questioningly. A small laugh escapes the ruby-eyed girl's lips.

"Just jump in and start swimming," she says as she falls back into the void of light beneath the two of them.

Watching the girl disappear into the brightness of the blue glow, Nintai comes to a decision and steps over the cliff's edge. The fall seems slow to her as the glow of orbs comes to meet her.

* * *

Nintai, as a nine year old girl, had been kidnapped by her aunt. The woman had been obsessing over her sister's death, and after several years of hating her niece, she finally decided to fulfill her sister's dying wish. But her brother-in-law was too protective of the girl to let her be alone by herself.

However, when he'd called her to go check on the brat, she'd taken the opportunity with glee. The first thing she'd done was tie the girl to her bedroom door and tear apart the room. She then used the paints that her so-called 'brother' had bought for the girl's art classes in the upcoming school year to paint a sentence above the bed.

She then proceeded to make the girl read and reread the sentence until she understood what it meant. All this took only an hour and a half to do. And when the girl was about break into tears after understanding why her aunt was doing all of this, something snapped. The paint on the wall glowed a bright blue, and the girl went through a major shift.

She asked for help locking away whatever it was that made her aunt so angry with her. She asked for help keeping it locked away. And then she asked for help to atone for killing her own mother and not even realizing it.

All these things she asked for, and when the light subsided, her aunt took the unconscious girl away from the house and off into the mountains, where she left the child to die. In the girl's eyes, this was the atonement she asked for. In order to make it up to her father, aunt, and late mother she never got to know, Nintai was to live in the mountains until her life simply disappeared.

When she woke up, Nintai had looked around and felt nothing at the sight of the greenery that surrounded her. The usual joy that would surface did not appear. And when she heard the bird songs, she did not hum along like the happy child she was. No, she simply listened to them for a while, then got up and went for a walk when her stomach growled.

Just as she'd asked, what had made her aunt hate her so much had been locked away. Along with the memory of what the woman had done to her room and her wrists. Three days after her father had seen her room ruined, the girl was found in the mountains by a hiker and his own child, another girl named Lee.

When she was asked by the police why she was out in the mountains, all she could say was that a woman came to the house to visit her, and another woman showed up to take her away. The first woman she identified as her aunt, who kicked and screamed abuse at the girl as the police arrested her.

The second woman she described was unusual to say the least. Long hair, the shade of lotus blossoms, and with a face that seemed to have been crying as she took Nintai off to a place where her aunt couldn't find her.

* * *

Opening her eyes, Nintai sees nothing but pure darkness. The sound of water dropping reaches her ears, along with the sound of a lock turning. She closes her eyes quickly, blocking out the light that enters at the sound of a moving door.

"She's still not awake?" _Who is that?_

"I'm sorry, my lord. She won't wake up, no matter what we do. Some of my men believe she forced herself into a sealed state after going unconscious." _That one I know. It's that ninja leader._

The thought of him bathing in the hot spring comes to mind, and she forces her heart rate even and the heat trying to burn her face to subside. No matter what happens, she has to keep her eyes closed, her breathing deep, and most importantly her heart rate in check.

"Well, then. I suppose this brat is enough trouble as is. Kasumimaru, head back out and retrieve the real princess. This one won't be of any use until she wakes up, if she wakes up." _Who the heck is that!?_

"Yes, my lord." And Kasumimaru's voice resonates within the room as a slight breeze moves through the air.


	9. With Mother's Guidance

The man still in the room with Nintai walks over to her. Expecting to be kicked, Nintai forces her clenching muscles to relax. Whatever he's going to do, she needs to respond as if asleep. But the strange thing is that he simply pats her head and strokes her hair, as if he knows her anxiety and pain.

"It's too bad a little girl was mixed into all of this. Ah well. With the way everything's gone, it's no real surprise."

The hand on her head moves away and the sound of a door moving enters Nintai's ears. Once the lock turns again, she opens her eyes again. _It's amazing I didn't flinch at his touch._ Nintai thinks back to the conversation the two men had; Kasumimaru is off after Sayori again, and Nintai is trapped with no way of protecting, not even warning, her friend of the oncoming danger. She doesn't even have a way to tell how long she'd been out.

But that isn't her problem right now. Moving her wrists, she finds herself tied up. That explains why she's lying on the floor, which is probably why her body is sore. The ropes around her wrists are somewhat loose, most likely to allow blood flow and possibly due to sympathy for her circumstances. Being kidnapped and tied up isn't fun for anyone.

Her hands are free in no time; she found the knot to be a simple one, easy to break free of, and not tied to hold. _Someone wants me free._ The thought is a nagging one, but one that would have to wait for later. A blue glow enters her vision and Nintai sees the two pendants sitting on table in the corner. The glow also gives her a look at the room.

Damp with no real furnishings, the place is obviously something of a dungeon, even without the stereotypical chains on the wall. Taking a few steps and stretching to get her blood flowing, Nintai stares at the pendant for a few seconds. The green one sits eerily while the blue one glows brightly.

"Is that you, stupid tactician?" Her whisper seems to be more of a shout in the silence around her.

"Yeah. Hurry up and get us out of here."

Nintai smiles; she doesn't have anything to get her out, not even a lock pick to use on the door. Forget the fact that she doesn't even know how to use a lock pick to begin with. And no ideas are coming to her sleep hazy mind. Still, she quickly picks up the pendants and pulls them over her head. The green one she tucks under the kimono she's wearing, the blue one hangs gently against her chest.

"Great, I'm around your neck again. But that'll only help if you've got a plan."

Nintai looks at the stone. "You can't think one up?"

The pendant glows silently as an answer. Nintai shakes her head and moves up to the door. Placing her ear against it, she listens for signs of life on the other side. Nothing reaches her ears. The only sound reaching her ears is her own breathing. With no signs of life on the other side, she only has one option.

"I guess I'll just have to bang on the door."

"Do what?"

Just as she raises her hands to bang on the door, a sensation familiar to her registers. She takes another look around the room, seeing nothing in the dim glow.

"Hey, can you be a bit brighter?"

"Uh, sure." And the blue glow grows to light the entire room.

In the corner is Nintai's mother. Well, that may be an overstatement. The woman stares through her daughter at the door behind her. After a few seconds she moves forward and past Nintai towards the door and taps gingerly on it. She takes a step back, as if avoiding something, then walks through the solid wood.

Nintai thinks for only a moment before mimicking her parent. She takes a step back and waits a moment, but nothing happens. _If anyone is on the other side, they would have heard that right?_ Nintai stares, confused, at the wooden surface of the door. Her mother's form passes from behind her once more, as if in repeat.

Her loose fist knocks gingerly on the door once more, steps back, then glides through it. After another minute or so, she passes Nintai from behind once more and repeats the actions again. The woman is telling her daughter something, but what it is lies just beyond Nintai's current reasoning.

_Am I missing a memory or something?_ Her mother stops just before knocking on the door and turns to her daughter, a smile on her face. Nodding once, her form disappears into wisps of smoke.

"Hey, ko. Who was that?"

"Mother acting as a guide of sorts."

Nintai walks to the middle of the room and sits on her legs. Taking a deep breath she closes her eyes and thinks about a dark place with orbs behind her and a cliff in front. After a few minutes of imagining this place, she finds herself standing at the cliff. A girl with ruby eyes is floating before her, a single blue orb next to her. With a smile on her face, the floating girl, pushes the orb upward and it floats high into the air.

"Back already?"

"Mother says I'm missing a memory I need right now."

The girl smiles brightly and motions to the space behind Nintai. Turning to see what she stares at, Nintai finds the field of white orbs spread out before her.

"Take your time. I'll be waiting down below."

Nintai nods without looking back and moves forward towards the orbs. Trying to discern which one she needs, she finds herself staring at a rather bright one, floating a bit away from the others. Feeling certain of herself, she walks over to it and reaches out. Her fingers brush the surface and the orb dims for a moment before enveloping the area in a bright light.

* * *

The room remains quiet as the woman in the bed tries to speak. All the girl at the door can make out is that a monster is somewhere. Where exactly is beyond her. Her aunt, sitting on the far side of the bed, looks over and glares with hatred in her eyes. How Nintai had mistaken that look for something else is beyond her grown self just next to the little girl.

"Maybe it was just because I didn't want to see that hatred. My aunt has to be the monster. She has to be."

Taking a deep breath, Nintai kneels next to herself, placing her hand on her own shoulder. The little girl looks up to her older self, tears in her eyes, and says one simple word.

"Why?"

Smiling at her own ignorance, Nintai thinks back to this day, as she remembers it, and realizes the morph it had gone through. Her mother had given a warning not to her husband, or her sister, even. The warning had been for her, to make her wary of the hatred in her aunt's eyes.

"Because we were supposed to be smarter than we were. Mother gave us the only warning she could, in the only way she could.

"She said it like that to protect us from immediate danger. She saw the risk, and attempted to give herself up to save us. She really did love us, with all her heart. Unfortunately, her attempts backfired, and our aunt became horrible to us, didn't she?"

The little girl's tears dry up and she smiles, her eyes turning a ruby color. "Yes, she did. And I can't wait to see what becomes of her."

A soft blue glow emanates from the body of the dead and envelopes everything around there.

* * *

Nintai stands before the ruby-eyed girl once more, just before leaving again. The girl sends a blue orb up into the air to join the other and the two fuse to form a greater one. Looking over the edge of the cliff, Nintai sees the blue glow below.

"That glow is from a lot of broken memories, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is."

Sighing to herself, Nintai looks at her opposite. The ruby eyes shine brightly as Nintai waves goodbye to the floating girl. Closing her eyes, Nintai thinks of an anchor in reality: Sayori's smiling face comes to mind, followed by all the bodyguards she'd been travelling with and fighting alongside. Even the glaring blonde showed up with everyone else.

When Nintai opens her eyes again, the floating orbs are gone and the blue glow of the pendant has replaced the blue glow of the broken memories. Standing up once more, Nintai thinks back to the memory she'd just relived. _What did that memory teach me about this situation? There has to be something._

The first thing that came to her mind was her smaller self crying. The next thing was her ignorant attitude toward her aunt. After that was the revelation that her mother's warning had been wasted on her daughter's uneducated ears. The girl barely even knew how to read at the time. How could her mother possibly expect her to understand?

Shaking off her thoughts of her mother, she focused on the door in front of her. Her mother had tapped on the door, but when Nintai did it, nothing happened. _My ignorance!_ She thinks about how her mother had done it. Gingerly, as if she knew where she was. Not to mention that the woman wouldn't have been in this dungeon like Nintai is.

"So, it was merely a reference to something else? I guess I'll have to remember that for later." Nintai's mutters shatter the silence, although no one can hear.

Trapped in the room, with no plan on how to get out, Nintai decides to get some more sleep. But, no matter how long she lays down, or how long she keeps her eyes closed, rest is elusive. _I can't think of a plan and I can't get any sleep, either._

Sitting up, she looks at the door again. Thinking it pointless, Nintai stands and walks up to it, holding her clenched fist just before the wooden surface. Sighing, she gives it a few slight taps and steps back. The sound of the lock turning shocks Nintai and the door opens.

In front of her is a familiar and long missed face. How she managed to get here, though, is beyond Nintai's comprehension.

"Lee?"

A bright smile is returned at the sound of the name.

"Lee!"

Nintai tackles the girl in front of her, happiness evident on her face. Lee stands, shocked, at the emotion being expressed. Since she'd met Nintai the only emotion she'd seen from the girl was negative, excluding the rare smile she gave Sayori.

"Umm, what's up?" Her shock is evident in her voice.

Nintai looks up, about to speak, but a man's voice rings out. "The girl's escaping!"

"Oh, crud."

"Don't just stand there, you two! Run!" The pendant, glowing faintly, gives the only push they need.

Together, the two girls rush through the darkness. Coming on a set of stairs, the two sprint up, Lee tackling the man that turned from the corridor above onto the stairs. With a soldier on the ground, and the sounds of more coming, the girls turn and start running through the hallways.

It doesn't take long for them to break through the maze of corridors and see the gardens outside. The entire place is dark, the light from the moon missing regardless of the shining stars. _Oh, so it's nighttime. And a new moon, too._ Lee takes the first step off the walkway and runs over to the wall, banging on it with force. From over the top comes two ropes.

Lee looks back at Nintai and motions to her. _Wait, I'm forgetting something. I know I am._ In her heart, Nintai knows that leaving could cause a calamity and that someone would be in pain because of it. Shaking her head, she checks herself over, trying to think of what she's missing.

The pendants hang peacefully at her neck, the blue having ceased its glowing. Her kimono is definitely on, or she'd be feeling a pretty bad draft. Having everything, amounting to only three items, she stares at the wall. Shrugging away the feeling of forgetfulness, she moves over to where Lee waits and grabs a rope.

The two girls place their feet against the wall and start climbing, the sounds of rushing feet all over. _And yet no one's thought to check the gardens?_ Laughing to herself at the thought of the guard's incompetence, Nintai reaches the top just before Lee. She grabs hold of the edge and pulls herself over onto the other side.

Not fearing the drop below her, she falls to land on her feet. Lee falls next to her and rushes past into the darkness of the fields that surround the castle. Once more, Nintai has escaped a castle with something of contemptuous ease. That single idea brings great pleasure and excitement to her.

The feelings she'd been blocking up since childhood have been released. In a way, she wants to thank the ninja for sending her into an unconscious state. Her perception of her past would never have changed. She also realizes she needs to apologize to her father for blaming him the entire time. And also that she needs to deal with aunt, for her own and her late mother's sake.

That's why she keeps running long into the night, with hopes of seeing an entire group of smiling faces from both the past and the present.

* * *

Staring off from a cliff in the mountains, Sayori thinks of her missing friend. The girl was supposed to have caught up by now, especially with the tactician around her neck to guide her. Nearby, the six bodyguards are gathered around a fire, debating new strategies. Anything having to do with the main road is currently being avoided.

"We have to use it eventually," Bo mutters, "but we shouldn't use it until we're sure it's absolutely safe."

Yo, sitting cross-legged on a large rock, sighs heavily. "No matter what we do, those ninja will anticipate it with ease. Heck, they're probably increasing security around the princess's home just in case we get close. They probably have an excuse for why they'd attack her all set up, too."

Jin stares at the ground, his head empty of ideas, all shot down or called ridiculous. "I still don't get why we can't just dress her up again and sneak by." He likes the way she looks in normal clothes.

Mon-Mon, scratching his head speak up about his shot down idea as well, thinking Jin had agreed with it. "Well, if we can't claim that she's being brought to the castle lord and dress her up the way I wanted to, then there's nothing for it."

"Pervert monk. Who would believe the old man asked for a woman? He's too old!" Yo stares at the monk as if he's stupid.

"But you have to admit that she'd make a good geisha! She's more than beautiful enough!"

The sound of a sword being half-drawn turns the group's attention to Muneshige, who has a cruel glint in his eyes. He'd explicitly said that the word 'geisha' is taboo and that anyone who spoke it would be silenced immediately. Mon-Mon, realizing the danger he's in, quickly hides behind Ittosai, who shoves him away.

"Don't get me mixed up in your stupidity."

Bo sighs, resigned. "In any event, we're stuck here for the night." He stands and walks over to Sayori, placing his hand on her shoulder. "And the princess needs to get her rest now."

Taking the hint, Sayori stands and walks over to a cave that the group had picked for their resting place. Inside, she lays down and closes her eyes, praying that she might get at least a little sleep. Luckily, she'll manage to fall asleep, but not without seeing a nightmare about losing Nintai to a monster with reddened claws.

The bodyguards stay up for a little longer, coming up with at least a basis for a plan, before five head into the cave to rest as well, leaving one to watch out for any enemies. As they sleep, they see the nightmare, too. But none of them try to discuss what they'd seen as the dream is lost when everyone wakes up.

* * *

Day has broken and Nintai stretches on her tree branch. "I haven't slept in a tree in years!"

Lee laughs just below her on the other side of the tree. "Why not? I thought you loved sleeping outside?"

The two climb down from the tree and walk over to another one. At the very top, looking out over the trees around them all, a girl named Nami is searching for something. The two girls on the ground shake their heads at the early riser and turn to the two small duffle bags sitting at the tree's base.

Lee gets into one and pulls out a loose t-shirt, a pair of shorts, and underwear, handing them over to Nintai, who beams happily at them. "There's a stream over there if you want to wash up before changing into them. And don't forget the always more comfortable than bare feet shoes."

From the bottom of the bag, Lee produces a pair of active lifestyle tennis shoes with socks stuffed inside. Nintai hated closed toe shoes in particular, but running around in sandals had made her a huge fan in the past few days. Taking them into her arms as well, she calls up to Nami that she's headed for the stream and walks in the direction Lee points.

Nami, hearing her voice, starts jumping from branch to branch down the tree. Chasing after little kids all time as a daycare worker has made her fit and agile enough to act like a ninja. A little more practice and she could probably keep up with one, too. She lands nimbly, sort of like a cat, just over a foot away from Lee, who doesn't flinch. Years of chasing after an actively troublesome Nintai has given her nerves of steel.

"Well, Nami? What are we doing?"

"The girl flashes a toothy grin. "The ninja are headed for the mountains. I saw a few about half a mile ahead of us rushing through the trees in that direction. Tracking these guys is easier than I thought it'd be."

Lee chuckles. The two look up at the sound of crunching twigs to see Nintai redressed in more modern… futuristic… in more 'Nintai' clothes. Nami smiles brightly at the look on Nintai's face. In fresh, clean underwear and clothes, Nintai simply can't wipe the goofy grin on her face.

"I never thought I'd hate dresses that much." The kimono is folded up in her arms, ready to be washed and dried when the chance comes.

Nami and Lee laugh at her remark. "Really, you used to love dresses as a child! You practically lived in that kitten dress your dad bought you for your seventh birthday." Nami's smile doesn't seem to be going away either.

"Yeah, well, it was just so cute, and I really like cats."

Her blush at the mention of her childhood is unexpected and catches the other girls off guard. Nami hasn't seen Nintai blush since the girl had been given a white ribbon on white day, two weeks before disappearing. But Nami's shock is nothing compared to Lee's, whose only seen her turn red from anger and rage.

"What's wrong with you, Nintai?" The two say together.

She smiles happily. "A mother's guidance can truly heal."


	10. She Can Find the Meaning

Nintai, Lee and Nami are rushing through the trees. Nami and Lee had changed their looks and outfits after visiting the stream that's near where they'd slept last night. The dyes they'd put into their hair and the dirt they'd rubbed onto their skin is now missing, revealing their true appearances to any who see them.

Nami's speed flings her hair behind her, left loose just because she thinks she looks best that way. The color seems to blend into the bark of the trees, thanks to the brown highlights and lowlights in her darker brown hair. Her skin is tanned lightly, any imperfections hidden by flawlessly applied makeup. The green eyes set into her face are soft and bright, easily giving away the happiness Nami currently feels.

Lee's eyes, a brown as dark as Nami's hair, aren't so easy to read, but her body language is. Relaxed and free-moving, her limbs show no sign of any damage. Regardless of her rough upbringing as a military veteran's daughter, she has no scars anywhere on her body, excluding a single star-like birthmark on her lower back, lighter than the rest of her deeply tanned skin. Her raven black hair contrasts to Nintai's lotus color, but matches it in length.

Both girls compared themselves to Nintai while they were bathing, taking guesses at Nintai's development over the last few days. Nintai had yelled at them, her face red, as she heard their criticism about her body. Suffice to say, all three can rest assured that they at least reach social standards.

The three of them laugh as they move from branch to branch, sometimes swinging, other times running the length, and the rest jumping from one tree to the next. A couple times, just to show off her untapped natural talent, Nintai does a backflip when letting go of a branch she's swinging on. Nami tends to land on the side of a tree and push off to land on a new branch for her trick. Lee, tends to avoid unnecessary exertion, finding the easiest, but not time-consuming bath, and running lengths of branches instead of jumping and swinging.

Either way, all three of them are acting like monkeys as they fly through the branches around them. Stopping for a quick energy boosting snack, the three sit at the top of a tall tree, checking their distance from the ninja they're tracking. In the distance, Nintai thinks she makes out the silver shade of the leaders hair as the ninja jump through the top branches of trees.

"These guys aren't going very fast, are they," Nami comments.

"They don't have anyone to save, or any urgency to do so, either. Sayori and those bodyguards were counting on me catching up to them once I'd dealt with some troublesome ninja. Last time just happened to be lucky for them." Nintai's voice is filled with determination and agitation; the thought of how she'd failed her friends has been bugging her since she'd woken up this morning.

"Alright then, let's catch these guys and deal with them," Lee chimes with an upbeat attitude before jumping down to the lower branches.

Nodding their agreement, Nami and Nintai head down the tree after her and the three start moving among the branches once more. A small thought occurs to her as Nintai swings off a branch, doing a backflip and landing on a lower one. AS she pushes off the branch toward another, the thought stays locked in place. _I don't want to do any damage to them, though. They're just following orders after all. And from what I've read, ninja were taught to obey their master's orders without fail and without complaint._

* * *

Sayori, walking in the middle of the six bodyguards, can't stop thinking about her friend. It's been an entire 24 hours since the group had escaped the ambush, and 24 hours since Sayori had left her friend behind, by herself. The entire thing has been eating at her conscience, and her depression has worsened since last night.

The bodyguards around her, excluding Ittosai the psycho, worry about her overly-subdued nature, not to mention her more than leisurely pace. Before much longer the group stops and Mon-Mon drop down in front of her, offering his back so she doesn't have to walk. The pretense he gives is that her feet must be hurting a lot after the last few days of running.

Thinking about it for only a second, Sayori says nothing as she accepts the offer and climbs onto his back once more. This time, though, the monk does not sprint off ahead of everyone else; the girl on his back just seems too depressed for the joke to do any good.

* * *

While hiding in the trees, the three ninja-like girls watch the resting ninja, balancing themselves on the branches of the tallest tree and moving with them as the wind blows. The ninja's pace is truly relaxed as they hunt down the 'princess' and her protectors. What they don't realize is that, above them, three extremely hostile girls are arming themselves.

Nintai has made it clear that she just wants the unit of men immobilized and harmless, not dead as road kill. To the other two's dismay, the sentiment is not up for argument and they are forced to arm themselves with that idea in mind. Holding blunt weapons in hand, Nami and Lee look at Nintai with pleading eyes. Nintai rolls hers in response.

"No," is all she says.

Sighing to herself, Nami looks at the short staff in her hand. She's nowhere near proficient in any form of fighting, but she was a flag twirler in high school, and she still practices the activity today, sometimes returning to her school to help the twirlers who'd taken her place with their technique. The idea that her experience tossing and twirling a flag pole makes her wonder what else she could do thanks to high school activities she's kept up with.

Lee just stares at the metal pipe she'd be brandishing as a blade. Thin, but still shining, she'd brought it along hoping to make a rotisserie chicken on it. The thought of a roasting bird turning over a fire has always been a good one to her, and the memory of her last survival trip with her dad comes to mind. Even if it is a bit short, she has two, so a duel wield would be possible. A problem with the idea is that her left hand has never been as strong as her right, and is mostly defensive to begin with.

Both look at Nintai next, not seeing any weapon in her hand. Only the blue pendant around her neck catches their eyes. Nami reaches up and touches the green one that her former charge had asked her to hold onto. Apparently it's important that it stay safe, but Nami doesn't see how it could possibly be safer in her possession than in the possession of the girl who seems to know what she's doing.

"How exactly are you going to fight, Nintai?" Lee leans down to look Nintai in the eyes. "What are you going to use as your weapon?"

Nintai meets Lee's eyes, a malicious gleam in them. "I don't need a weapon. He'll guide me."

She flicks the pendant on her neck and it lights up. "That's right, ladies. Don't worry about ko here; I've got her covered."

Nami looks at the pendant in concern. She remembered what the twins and Sei had told her and Lee the day they came back. It'd only been a few hours since they'd left their own world and they'd returned, a little worse for wear. Still, the three teens had taken Nintai's cellphone and called the number one speed dial, which just happened to be Nami's number.

Nami had gone and retrieved Lee as well before going to Nintai's apartment, a two hour drive from her house, two and half since she went to get Lee as well. The explanation given to the two when they saw Nintai and Sayori on futons, sleeping as if they'd never wake up, seemed a bit fantastical. But the way they explained it and the look of the green pendant proved otherwise.

After sending the teenagers into another room to get some sleep, and hopefully lower their blood pressure and heart rates, the two girls left had looked the pendant over, finding nothing unusual. Only when Lee had fallen asleep next to Nintai's futon and Nami was about to fall asleep as well did the pendant show any abnormalities. A green glow had emerged from the depths, along with a voice begging them to help her saviors.

The next thing they saw was a setting sun and man with silver hair carrying Nintai gently in his arms through a castle gate. The sight had confused them, but the way he'd carried her made Nami's intuition go crazy. And remembering the scene now made it go nuts all over again.

"Hey, Nintai. You wouldn't happen to know that silver haired guy, would you?"

At the mention of him, Nintai turns red. "I'd rather not talk about it, please."

Nami and Lee look at each other, Nami with a meaningful gaze, Lee with a confused. Soon, Lee's changes to show understanding, and a knowing smile crosses her face. The two grin like maniacs at each other, ignoring Nintai's menacing glare. The two pat her on the shoulder, saying they'd let it go… for now.

"But we're leaving the old man to you," they say in chorus.

"He's not that old. Probably only college age."

That makes their smiles and gazes fill with even more meaning. _Crazy people._ Nintai has been ignoring the flips in her stomach as she watches Kasumimaru moving about.

"And he has a name, too."

The girls nudge her shoulders.

"Kasumimaru," she whispers.

Nami and Lee have to hold back their giggles at the sight of Nintai's furious blushing. Nintai feels like she should stop talking. Immediately.

"Sounds like you like mystery," Nami teases.

"It's a good name for an escape artist. Something tells me he'll try getting out of any trap you set, Nintai," Lee giggles.

"Yeah, yeah. Let's have a good laugh at the girl who's never going to get married of her own free will. Can we just get this over with?"

Nintai starts down the tree, moving with the branches and using the wind to hide any sounds of her descent. Nami and Lee reign in their laughter before heading after her. As the three climb down to the lower branches, they continually check on their targets as they lean against the same and other trees or lay down for a nap. Kasumimaru is sitting against another tree, looking over a simple map.

Praying they aren't heard, the girls stop at relatively the same level and Nintai points the two other girls in opposite directions. The intent is clear, they'll attack on three separate fronts and hopefully beat all of them senseless. Showing the number five on her hands and mouthing the word 'minutes,' the other two nod and move off. They have five minutes to get into place, or Nintai is moving on her own.

Waiting quietly on her perch, Nintai's nerves are on high alert, forcing her to take complete control of her reflexes in order to not flinch or give herself away. She's attempting to keep track of time by counting in her head, but her awareness, and her lousy concentration, make it difficult, and she loses count somewhere around 250. Shaking her head, she counts to ten before pulling out a baseball from a bag behind her.

This is the starter, something the girls had prearranged at the top of the tree. Once it's thrown, all three will drop down and attack all those in sight. Nintai, in particular, will simply attack and move toward Kasumimaru in an attempt to deal with the leader. With him down, the others should flee. Being the leader, he's got to be the strongest, so why would they stay to try and beat a person that is obviously stronger than any of them.

The only problem with their plan is if the ninja realize that they outnumber them, along with the fact that their only aiming to damage and immobilize the ninja, not kill. Nintai prays, pulling her arm back, that if they do notice that fact, they'll see the girls as more formidable instead of weaker.

Moving her arm forward, she aims for a well-muscled ninja laying on the ground. Her aim needs a little work, as she hits a bit lower than she'd meant to. While he curls himself up, holding onto the damaged, er… goods… the three girl fall down form the trees at the same time and strike at the first ninjas they see. Nintai's peripheral vision brings Kasumimaru to her attention; he's standing and moving towards the closest girl, Nami.

_Not in your life._ Slamming her left palm into a ninja's nose and bringing déjà vu, Nintai reaches into the bag again with her right and pulls out another baseball. Her arm goes through the motions immediately and her aim is perfect. The ball nails Kasumimaru in the shoulder. _Hopefully I've done some damage to his arm and bring his attention to me._ Her hopes come true.

The ninja leader locks eyes with her, surprise registering in his expression as he recognizes her. Nintai doesn't stay like that for long, turning left to block an attack from a weak man. She grabs ahold of his right wrist, pulling him forward and bringing her right knee straight into his pelvis. _That'll definitely be sore for a while. Please don't hate me!_

Pivoting on her left foot, she puts all the force she can into her left elbow, ramming it into another man's jaw as a blade thrust slides just past her, skimming the back of her shirt. She turns her eyes back to Kasumimaru, holding his injured shoulder, and clenches her fists.

"I'll guide you. Flow through the motions," comes the voice and blue glow of the pendant around her neck.

"No problem." A memory from the first time she picked up the pendant floats through her mind for a second; but only a second.

This time, Nintai works with the force of the tactician in the pendant, moving past ninja as they charge her, dropping each one as she slips under or around their defenses. Within a minute, she's rushing a shocked Kasumimaru, who'd watched the spectacle in awe. His block is a bit slow as her right foot comes high, aiming for his jaw and a one hit KO. Still, his uninjured arm takes the damage instead, sending a jolt up it and fracturing the lower part.

With both arms injured, Kasumimaru backs off, knowing he's outmatched from both experience and the latest display of power and technique. When he tries to turn and retreat, Nintai's already moving, circling around and driving her elbow into his stomach. With the air forced form his lungs, Kasumimaru drops to the ground gripping his gut and trying to breathe.

The other ninja who'd been busy fighting the other two notice their leader down and immediately back off, retreating themselves into the trees and leaving their unconscious companions behind. Nintai, feeling vengeful, takes her fist and slams it into Kasumimaru's temple, knocking him out.

Nami and Lee walk over with several cuts and bruises, but nothing a bandage and some antiseptic can't fix. Together, the three smile slowly, then laugh, growing louder and louder. Their crummy plan, which only had three details, had outsmarted and beaten an entire unit of trained fighters; it's a good day to be them.

Before they think of anything else, the girls start collecting the unconscious men and checking them over. The injuries are all simple and healable and Nintai smiles happily. A few fractured or broken bones, a couple bruised heads, maybe a crushed diaphragm, but everything could be fixed with the first aid kit they'd hidden in the tree they spied from.

"We did good, didn't we?" Nintai's bright smile is all Nami and Lee need to feel as if their wounds didn't exist.

* * *

Sayori is walking down from the mountains with four of her bodyguards. Ahead of her, Muneshige and Jin are looking back and forth, trying to see anything that might be abnormal. Behind her Yo and Mon-Mon are doing the same. But Sayori doesn't complain about the silence; her thoughts are still on Nintai's well-being.

And the thought of Bo and Ittosai behind them, waiting for an enemy to cross their paths, worries her all the more. With Nintai still missing, Sayori can't help but think about the worst scenario, regardless of what her friend had assured her. It doesn't matter how good she may be at what she does; Nintai cannot kill to save herself, nor can she harm another for her own well-being. Once Sayori disappeared into the trees, Nintai had no reason to fight for longer than a few minutes.

Feeling like she should've done something more to help, besides throwing a mere pendant, Sayori begins to tear up. Holding back the sadness, she forces herself to focus on the path ahead of her. The first thing she needed to do was get back to Hatsuhime's castle. Then she could call for a search and look for Nintai.

Yes, once she gets to the castle, everything can be fixed. With herself reassured, Sayori increases her pace, surprising all her bodyguards and forcing them to increase their paces as well.

* * *

Nintai is standing among flashing lights once more. After falling asleep, thanks to Nami and Lee insisting, she'd found herself here once more. The blue glow coming from below the cliff is still there. With ruby eyes, the other girl watches Nintai with interest. A smile directed at her elicits another in return.

The floating girl gesture at the orbs everywhere, and Nintai nods her head, looking around with something akin to anxiety. _What will I see next?_ The brightest light is a fair bit away and she walks over to it. Reaching out her hand, she touches the surface and sees the same blinding light once more.

When it subsides, Nintai sees a large cherry tree dominating the other trees around it. Just before bloom, its beauty has yet to be revealed. Standing at its base is a girl much like Nintai, but older and much more developed. She turns and makes eye contact, then smiles and gestures for Nintai to join her. Thinking of Patience, Nintai moves to join the woman at the tree's base.

"It's good to see that I do get to live again."

Nintai looks at the woman's face. The features are similar to her own, and the hair color is almost identical. The differences between the two could easily be explained by the difference in age. Noticing her staring the woman gives a bright smile to Nintai.

"Tell me, what's your name?"

With a little suspicion about the woman, Nintai gives her name cautiously, narrowing her eyes a little.

"A good name for a good girl. So your parents chose to name you after this tree, then?"

Nintai stares at her blankly. Nintai is sure her parents had named her after her grandmother, who had changed her own at the encouragement of a friend. Her name is supposed to mean 'endurance.'

"No, I'm named after my grandmother."

A laugh escapes the woman's lips; the sound is like music to Nintai. "Yes, of course. Family relations usually are a main reason. But what was your grandmother named after?"

That answer Nintai doesn't have. She just knows one of her grandmother's friends had suggested the change. But something nags at her. The word Nintai can mean 'endurance,' of course, but that's when the meaning is manipulated. When translated by google from the Japanese kanji, the meaning is 'patience.' The name she'd given the tree was 'patience,' but Nintai still isn't sure whether that was a dream or not.

"What is this tree's name?"

The woman smiles happily. "How can you not know? We did name it after all."

Nintai's eyes widen at her words, and she turns towards Patience. The tree had grown a great deal. Whatever she was supposed to find out, Nintai obviously heard all she needed to, and the space around her fills with a brilliant blue glow.

Standing in front of the other girl once more, Nintai locks her sapphire eyes with the other girl's ruby eyes. With a smile, the other girl pushes a third light up to join with the larger one above.

"That's three down already. You're doing good, aren't you?"


	11. Praying to Escape the Depression

Nintai, Nami and Lee have been working non-stop on healing the ninja they had injured yesterday. Although the men didn't really want their help, the majority were having trouble moving around. Those that could, the girls left in charge of cooking whatever it was that they managed to hunt down that morning; mostly rabbits and a fish.

Lee, like the military survival expert her father taught her to be, had cleaned every animal herself and bagged all the meet from the now dead creatures. This ability has impressed every ninja that's woken up, which means every ninja except Kasumimaru. Somehow, the ninja leader managed to stay unconscious, no matter how loud the small 'camp' became.

"He's either a heavy sleeper, or Nintai has a killer arm.'

Nintai smiles at the comment.

"Excuse me, miss," one ninja calls. "What are we supposed to do with this?"

He holds up a bottle of antiseptic spray. Nami shakes her head, sighing for the fifth time. "You'd think they'd pay attention."

Nintai and Lee laugh as Nami moves away to help with replacing bandages. Without their masks on, the ninja around the girls seem less frightening and more cheery. Many of them have been smiling at the girls since they woke up. Some have even apologized to Nintai about the ambush at the cherry tree.

"It was the only way our leader could think of to beat you. Rather strange, though," a particularly familiar ninja had said. "He usually would've said to just use a rifle."

The thought was a bit warming, but Nintai has been ignoring the part about the ninja leader's strange behavior. Instead, she's been focusing on the cooking fires, giving a hand wherever she can. Being the only person in the area that isn't injured, Nintai feels like she should be doing the absolute most to help all those around her. Their allegiance right now simply doesn't matter.

"Miss Nintai," one man says. "Why don't you go check on Master Kasumimaru? I think the other two are a bit too busy to do it themselves."

Nintai looks up and sees Lee and Nami removing and replacing bandages left and right. _He's right. They're way too busy. Besides, if he wakes up, he's likely to resist, and neither of them are in any way up to dealing with him._ Nodding her head to the man who'd spoken up, Nintai rises from her spot and walks off toward the tree she'd placed Kasumimaru under.

Once she was off in the distance, the man turns to the other two girls and grins, giving two thumbs up. The girls grin in return, nodding their heads and holding in their laughter. Almost the entire camp is well aware of what Nami and Lee believe about Nintai's current confusion. She simply has to like the guy, no other way to put it.

With her back to the secret conversation, Nintai thinks about what all she'll need to change Kasumimaru's bandages. Digging into one of the small duffle bags nearby, she finds replacement bandages, antiseptic, and a cream that's supposed to dull pain. _This stuff probably doesn't even hurt._ In case he wakes up, she grabs a bottle of pain killers.

Turning around, she calls to one of the more mobile ninja to bring her a bowl of water. Amazingly enough, the ninja had been carrying little stuff like bowls and cups with them. The girls hadn't even thought about that stuff; they just used water bottles and instant ramen cups with the little forks included.

Kneeling next to the sleeping man, Nintai takes in the features of his face for the second time. Yesterday, when she'd pulled him under the cover of this tree, she'd removed his mask herself. It was in the way of… well she just wanted to see his face, plus the material seemed hard to breathe through. She currently calling it pure curiosity; her friends have been calling it something else entirely.

Shaking her head clear, she starts fixing the splint she'd placed on his fractured arm; she feels rather horrible as she does so, knowing she'd caused it. She also replaces the bandages tied around his chest and shoulder, which her baseball had only just not shattered. Instead, Nami had proclaimed it dislocated, and ninja who had woken up this morning had confirmed her theory himself. Her feelings get even worse as she thinks of how hard she'd thrown that ball.

_I really should've held back._ She ties off the bandage and sighs to herself. Looking at his face once more, she stands up and turns to leave. Nothing stops her. _Why would it? He's unconscious, not to mention he probably hates me. I'm pretty sure I ruined his shoulder, and no one would ever like a person who hurts them, right?_

"How's he doing," Lee says sweetly.

"Are you supposed to be fixing people's bandages?"

The tanned girl smiles brightly. "All done."

Nintai raises her eyebrow, knowing full well why she'd been asked to look at Kasumimaru herself. Her friends are just trying to get her to fall for someone. They've been waiting for it since she first became a teenager, and they weren't letting this chance get away. _Meddling little…_ Not only were they intent on it, but for some reason, the injured ninja seem to be in on the game as well.

"When he wake up, he's gonna be in on this game as well. Just wait," Nintai mutters under her breath.

"Did you say something, kiddo?"

"Not a thing!" Nintai's beaming smile can't hide the evil scheming completely, and Nami and Lee both stare at her worriedly.

With apprehension mounting in their stomachs, Lee and Nami plan their own next move.

* * *

Sayori arrives with Jin and Muneshige on the highway. In both directions, the three of them see nothing but common people. No ninja or samurai to be seen either way. Together the three of them turn down the road and start walking, Sayori between the two men. Her worries are running wild, and the pain in her leg won't go away.

According to Jin, she'd been bitten by a snake, and the man had immediately knelt, pulled up her kimono hem and sucked the poison out. What was worse was when he decided a tourniquet would be necessary as well. Jin had positioned himself between her legs, turning a pale red, and Muneshige had walked up to them from ahead. Although he seemed to have some wayward thoughts about the setup, Muneshige had held her still as Jin applied the tourniquet.

Now removed, Sayori can feel dull pain just above her knee, where the blood flow had been slowed to down to restrict the flow of the poison that had managed to enter her system. And it didn't get better, either. In a conversation between the three of them in the next moment after the tourniquet, Jin had muttered that he'd had strange thoughts while putting the thing in place. Muneshige then proceeded to punch him after the guy confessed he'd considered not helping Muneshige's relationship with the princess.

Thinking about how she'd felt when the tourniquet was being applied makes Sayori blush a bright crimson, gaining the attention of both bodyguards.

"Something wrong, princess?" Muneshige stares at Jin blankly.

"Oh, no! I'm fine, just remembering the past few days is all."

"Don't worry, princess," Muneshige cuts in. "We'll get you back to the castle soon. Then we'll deal with Harumoto."

A thought pops back into Sayori's head. "We'll need to find Nintai, as well."

Muneshige and Jin smile. Despite the short time, the princess had become attached to the girl who'd helped save her. Nodding in unison, the two smile gently at her. The sight brings relief to Sayori's heart. None of the six hired bodyguards have yet to know why Sayori and Nintai have been so close since day one.

* * *

"Kasumimaru still isn't awake?" Nami looks over at the motionless body with concern.

"I don't think I hit him that hard, but I guess I really should've pulled it."

"Don't worry, Nintai," Lee beams at her. "His unconsciousness is making those bodyguards' jobs easier, after all. No one's following them anymore. Heck, even these guys," she gestures to everyone around the three girls, "have given up chasing them down."

Smiling weakly, Nintai thinks back to earlier that day. She'd been certain he'd wake up before noon, but lunch has come and gone, and she's been watching him for the three hours since._ Just a little rest. That's all it should've taken. Just like waking up from a good night's sleep… only with an additional headache._

Her feeling of helplessness toward the ninja's situation compels her to do something she doesn't even notice. She ends up sitting right next to him, waiting for him to wake up. Those behind her, although watching in triumph over the display, feel her same sense of helplessness. So everyone decides to get together after Nintai falls asleep, or everyone who could actually stay up past her.

This amounts to just under a fourth of the ninja, who all pretty much feel the same about the problem, and Nami. Crowded around a single fire, they talk about the issue at hand: Kasumimaru's state and Nintai's depression.

"I've never seen anyone take our leader out before, so I'm not sure if this is normal. But your friend acted a lot like this when we beat her. Maybe it's another case like that."

The young ninja that had spoken looks past Nami at the two sleeping forms next to a tree. One is stretched out as if lying on a bench. The other is curled up like a kitten, fast asleep from worrying herself into exhaustion. Almost everyone in the small camp had seen how worried she was, and if they hadn't, they'd been called dense and made fun of.

Nami nods, thinking through the explanation of why Nintai had been taken by the ninja into a castle. The men around her stare at her, waiting for her final judgment on the matter. After a few minutes of thinking and a quick check to make sure Nintai hasn't moved from her spot, Nami dives in.

"I don't know if it's exactly like Nintai's case. For her, everything in her head is so jumbled up that it's nearly impossible to wake her up until she's fully rested. She's visited plenty of therapists about the problem and they've all said it's psychological.

"Saying the two are alike is easy, but the possibility can't be explored unless we know something about him. And I've only watched him for a few hours, but even I can tell he doesn't talk about himself much, right?"

The ninja all around her nod, confirming her guess. "But we do know one thing about him," the young ninja speaks up again. "He's sworn himself to do everything he can for Lord Harumoto, no matter what it takes. Somewhere in his past is a reason for it as well; there has to be. Oh, and he's been taking in people with no connections since… well, since forever."

The rest of the group nods and new voice speaks out.

"You people ever think that maybe there's a reason he doesn't talk about it?" Nami looks at the faces around her, smiling at their confusion to the unfamiliar voice. "Over here, smart ones."

Nami rises to her feet and creeps over to Nintai. The blue stone that usually hangs around her neck is lying next to her, removed so it doesn't tangle or break in some weird way. Reaching over and picking up the pendant, Nami creeps back over to the group around the fire, sitting back down and throwing the necklace over her head. Resting against the girl's chest, the stone glows faintly.

"I'm sure he's got his reasons," the pendant says, glowing in time to the syllables. The men around stare at it in awe.

"That thing was glowing yesterday, too, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, and it seems so strange, too. The girl can move, sure. But when I noticed the glow, she seemed to simply flow through all of us."

The stone flashes once, as if in pride. "That's because I unblocked her natural talent."

Everyone stares at the glowing pendant, including Nami. Of course the girl was aware of Nintai's talent; she'd been watching the little girl when she was in high school and had kept in contact with her as she'd grown older and older.

"I know she has natural talent," Nami speaks with authority. "However, that amount is unusual. No one girl could possibly be able to handle a situation like that with such ease." Her gaze at the pendant sharpens. "You had to do have done something else."

The pendant glows, but nothing is said for a few seconds. The glow intensifies for a mere moment, as if experiencing an epiphany. "If you want to know what I can do, put me around ninja boy's neck!"

The suggestion catches everyone off guard.

"Do what," is all one particular ninja, an older one, can say.

"Like I said, put me around ninja boy's neck! I can act as a mediator between his thoughts and Nintai's! I'm already on a near permanent connection with her, so adding him to the list won't be a problem, especially if it's only going to be for one night."

"I'm sorry, but," Nami cuts in dryly, "that's not gonna happen."

"Why not!?" One small flash and the pendant's glow darkens. "Oh, I get it. You just want to see her heart broken."

Nami's face reddens from anger. "Excuse me!?" A snore from a nearby ninja silences everyone. Nami looks behind her to check on Nintai; she's still asleep.

"Alright, little blue, I admit that I want to see her having a relationship for once; it'd be nice. But I would never try to force her into a situation where the only outcome would be heartbreak! That's inhumane!"

"Alright then, think about this." The pendant brightens up. "Where is she from?" Nami stays silent, knowing everyone's watching her. "Exactly; you can't say because it's not normal. Now then, can she stay here?" Still, silence. "Exactly; you don't know. Now, one more. Would you let her?"

To that question, Nami can answer instantly. No, she wouldn't let Nintai stay in this place. She'd force the girl to return home with her, no 'buts' allowed, if she had to. The world they're from simply doesn't raise people to survive in an environment filled with no true and stable justice. It doesn't raise people to defend themselves as if their lives depend on it, because their lives usually only depend on following a condition.

With her thoughts in turmoil, the ninja realize the girl before them is no longer in the mind to let the two sleeping alone together decide on their own future.

"Miss Nami," a 30-something ninja calls. "If she can't stay here, can she at least do as she pleases?"

Nami looks at the man, here expression giving off a 'are you stupid?' air. Of course she wouldn't be able to do that; she'd seen how torn Nintai became when she returned from her disappearance; she flinched away from everyone around her, even her own father. The event had made her believe herself to be a monster, and the girl refused to believe that it wasn't her father that had scared her into running away from home. She even refused to believe that she never had run away, but was actually taken. She simply refused to believe any of the truth.

Now, with her bright smile back from whatever vacation it'd been taking, Nami feels that leaving her by herself at all could result in her being shattered all over again. The thought saddens her greatly, and losing that smile is absolutely intolerable.

"We understand why you're worried; it's pretty obvious after what that pendant… said," another ninja placates. "But our leader need something to change, and that girl just might be it. You didn't see him or hear him after we'd knocked Miss Nintai out."

"That's true."

"Yeah, how could you possibly know?"

One after another, the ninja attempt to convince Nami, trying to get her to at least let the girl take her own course. Nothing they say seems to get through to her.

"Oh, come on, Nami. She's almost a grown woman." Lee crawls up behind Nami, a big grin on her face. "Plus, the way those two are, I don't think you'll be able to stop her now."

Nami pales and gets up to get a better look at the two sleeping figures. Even from where she is, she can see Nintai had moved closer and grabbed hold Kasumimaru's arm. It looks completely natural for the two to be next to each other.

"So, then," the pendant pipes up again. "Why don't you just be a dear and put me around ninja boy's neck? I'm sure Nintai can't wait to get into his head and start messing around."

* * *

Nintai is sitting with the ruby eyed girl, chatting about the memories she's gone through. They seemed like they were the real things, and exactly how she remembered them before. As she floats, pretending to sit cross-legged, the girl with ruby eyes recites a line that comes to mind.

"A simple and noble heart is easily confused by the aspects of life."

Nintai looks at her with a questioning look. "Where'd you get that one?"

She points past Nintai. "That guy's consciousness has just meshed with ours. This place is becoming a sort of chat room."

And, true to the words spoken, the orbs that have been floating for what seems like the last few hours are flickering out, letting the area around them grow darker and darker as the ground beneath Nintai grows grass and trees.

"Why the change of greenery?"

The ruby eyed girl laughs at the pun. "Because it's no longer just our consciousness's here. His has joined, and with so many people connecting like this, there's bound to be some sort of change. The subconscious has to take some part in this little meeting as well."

Nintai nods at the explanation. It made sense; no one wants to meet someone in a deserted wasteland. A deserted field or forest seems like a much better option. She takes stock of the area around her, marveling at the rapid changes. The trees popping up in every other spot are growing green buds, then sprouting pink blossoms.

"Cherry trees!" Nintai jumps up in glee.

"Yes. They're beautiful." The girl with ruby eyes drops from the air and stands next to Nintai.

Watching the trees bloom brings smiles to their faces. Staring into the other's eyes, they nod to each other and turn to start walking in the direction of the other mind. Together they hum a nursery rhyme over and over. Then the other girl stops suddenly, hitting herself on the forehead.

"Crud! I don't have a name!"

Nintai stops a little further ahead and looks back at her. "What?"

"A name! It's easy if it's just the two of us talking! But with more than two people, everyone needs a name so someone can grab their attention!"

Nintai stares in disbelief. It's true that she'd never asked the girl's name, but then again, the girl had only opened up recently; really recently. As in, during this particular meeting. Her name seemed almost irrelevant to Nintai since she never expected to be able to connect to another's mind.

"So… what are we going to do?"

The girl is standing there, scratching her head. Then she bangs a clenched fist into her palm. "Got it! You come up with one!"

Nintai smiles. "Really? You want me to just pull one out of thin air?"

She nods eagerly. Nintai sighs and stares at her for a minute, noticing the clothes that are suddenly forming all over her. Looking down, she notices a bright blue kimono covering her as well. The design is simple, with flowers embroidering the edges. The sash is a darker tone of blue with a single lotus embroidery on one end and is tied in a knot on her right side.

Looking back up, she sees the other girl dressed similarly but in dark red kimono with a bright red sash tied on the left. _Are we really that opposite?_ Nintai thinks for a few seconds, then comes up with one of the cheesiest names ever.

"Alrighty, then! I've got your new name." The other girl's face shines brightly as she beams happily. "Let's go, Hantai!"

Hantai's face falls. "You couldn't come up with something better? Something more romantic?"

Nintai thinks about it for a second, then shakes her head with a huge grin on her face. "I'm no romantic. Sorry!"

The two laugh for a second at Nintai's lack of concern for the name she'd picked. Hantai stares at the girl in front of her, envying how original the name her companion has compared to her own brand new name. The thought is there for only a second as she thinks about the name. In a way, she feels she can't complain, and feeling anything is a major step forward for her. It means she'll be able to separate with a little more effort.

Together, the two start walking once more toward the new consciousness in the space, the blooming cherry blossoms finally starting to fall slowly.


	12. His Locked Heart

Nami and Lee are staring at Nintai. She's still clutching Kasumimaru's arm in her sleep.

"Kinda funny," Lee says through clenched teeth, trying to hold back the laughter.

"Yeah, maybe so," say Nami as she does the same.

They're both thinking the same thing.

"She's so much more honest in her sleep," they speak in unison, biting their lips to hold back their fits from the hilarity of it all.

Together, they walk away from her toward the group of ninjas gathered around three separate campfires. Immediately, in hopes of distracting themselves from their private joke, they get to work helping with changing bandages. It's morning and Nintai hasn't woken up quite yet. The blue necklace that had been bugging Nami to be put around the ninja leader's neck glows softly as it lays on the man's chest.

Nami just couldn't bring herself to put it around the guy's neck last night; a guy wearing a girly thing like a pendant just didn't seem right. When she made this comment audible, the pendant itself immediately tried to rant about how a guy could make an ornately decorated pendant like himself seem manly. Unfortunately for him, though, he simply couldn't go much farther than denying the statement and the explanation as to why was never revealed.

As a compromise, Lee suggested that the pendant just be laid on his chest, which the tactician within the stone agreed would work. So the former babysitter had placed het pendant on Kasumimaru's chest and left it there the entire night.

All of this had ensued after Lee decided to run Nami and the rest of the ninja through a crash course of how a teenager fell in love and made a relationship work. Everyone had turned bright red by the middle of the explanation and Nami had slapped her hand over Lee's mouth to stop her. The promise she'd made to keep Lee quiet had been to go with a proposed compromise and place the pendant on the chest instead of slipping it onto the neck.

"Y'know, Nami. After a good night's sleep, you seem a lot more open to her pursuing this," Lee comments.

Nami smiles weakly. "I know I'm not gonna be able to stop her. And who knows? Maybe her falling for him could be a good thing. And maybe she won't absolutely have to stay in one place. Who knows?"

The explanation seemed, to Lee, more for Nami's benefit and convincing than for anyone else's. But Lee didn't bring it up and left the girl to her self-convincing mumblings.

* * *

The two girls are overlooking a lower area from the top of a slope. At the bottom is an open space with a single large cherry blossom tree in the middle. Its roots can be seen beneath a collection of standing water or pond; which one neither girl seems to be able to tell. Surrounding the tree, floating on the water, are lily pads and lotus flower buds, all larger than normal and just big enough to hold one person per pad.

On a pad closer to the tree than the others sits a single man in meditation position. His silver hair is long enough to match a girl's and tied at the end. Dressed in all black, Nintai recognizes him easily, turning red as the memory of the hot springs pops into her head. _I'd remember that figure and build anywhere by now._ Truly, as the memory seemed to pop into her head whenever it wanted over the last two days.

Hantai stares at Nintai's face for a few seconds, then giggles at the sight of her reddened face. Nintai glares at her, annoyed at the laughter coming from a girl who simply couldn't understand the reasoning behind the blush.

"That's so funny! I didn't think you went for guys so much older than you!"

"His hair is naturally that color, despite his _young_ age! So be quiet!"

Hantai, still giggling, grabs ahold of Nintai's hand and grips it tightly. "Let's say high!"

Knowing what she's trying to do, Nintai attempts to resist, but with more knowledge about how the place they're in works, Hantai overpowers her easily. Together, although the blushing girl isn't exactly doing so with pleasure, the two go down the slope and up to the water's edge. Kasumimaru still hasn't noticed them and continues doing his meditation. Hantai pushes Nintai forward, making her jump to the first lily pad in front of her.

"I'm gonna wait here," she cheers happily.

"Of course you will," Nintai mutters.

Seeing no way out of it, she starts jumping from one lily pad to the next, keeping her eyes on Kasumimaru's back as she moves. Only three jumps away and he still hasn't noticed her approaching. Nintai, however, notices the size of the lily pad growing larger. Another, smaller lily pad is pushed away by the ripples of the water. Balancing herself on her own lily pad, Nintai stares at Kasumimaru, seeing that he didn't notice his change.

With disbelief in her eyes, she looks back at the shore to see that Hantai has moved to the top of the slope and is waving goodbye. The girl in the red kimono turns around and runs off into the cherry trees without another gesture.

"Hey! Get back here!" Her angry shout rebounds around the area.

"You?"

Freezing in place, Nintai listens carefully. Water rippling is all she hears. Turning back, she watches as Kasumimaru gets up from his place and stares at her in amazement. _This is so awkward. What am I supposed to do?_ With hesitation in her body language and a blush on her cheeks, it's easy to tell the girl standing on the lily pad, only one jump away from Kasumimaru, is lost.

* * *

Sayori sees the large spear falling, about to hit Jin as he stands to protect an unconscious Muneshige. The downed samurai had told her and Jin to run past the large man about to kill the two bodyguards, but they refused to leave him behind, and now all three were about to pay the price. With a single prayer and closed eyes, Sayori misses the next move.

A bloodcurdling roar of agony reverberates around the highway, the watching civilians taking several steps back as they cover their ears. Hearing this sound, Sayori assumes her two protectors have been killed and she was next.

But a distant yelling assured her otherwise.

"Hatsuhime! Princess!"

Opening her eyes, Sayori sees an old man in the distance rushing to her along with a number of men and woman dressed in everything from soldier's armor to servant's clothes. To her ears, right now, their cries of relief and joy are the most relaxing thing in the world. With them approaching, she finally dares to focus on Jin and Muneshige.

The red head stands proudly, a huge smile beaming at her. Muneshige lays, unconscious, next to the other man's feet. To her, the sight of them safe and sound is enough to keep her happy for the rest of her life. Another feeling inside makes her feelings towards the two confusing.

But with the old man passing Jin and embracing Sayori, the girl simply can't care right now; she just wants to pass out and sleep for a long time. And she does as the sight of a beautiful sunset fills her eyes. The only things that registers in her exhausted mind is the feeling of weightlessness and safety and the smell of sweat and blood.

The next thing she sees is a ceiling and sunlight filtering through a window shade. The sun has started rising.

"Oh yeah."

Sayori sits up in the futon. Just a little ways away are the doors with two shadows being projected onto them by a couple of candles. These shadows disappear soon as the candles casting the light are blown out.

"So, I was just reliving it, then?"

Saying it to herself helps Sayori confirm it. She'd merely dreamed the events of the evening before back up, forcing herself to relive and remember the feelings.

"What were those feelings, anyways?"

* * *

Nintai stands on her lily pad wishing she could just turn around and start hopping her happy way back to the dirt and grass. But Hantai is no doubt waiting for that to happen and is hiding somewhere among the cherry blossoms to catch her. So she just stands there, her wish in heart, and stares at the green plant on which she quietly waits.

Kasumimaru's amazement had surprised her for a moment, but his silence hadn't. The two simply can't talk to each other. The only times they'd even come into contact had been in battles. Either that, or one had been unconscious while the other looked after them. No matter what Nintai thinks of, she can't seem to open her mouth, much less say anything.

The ripples in the water from movement catch her eyes. She looks up for a second, seeing Kasumimaru sitting down again, facing the tree. _A tree._ Looking up even further, she stares at the tree that grows from the waters. Its blossoms are a light purple, much like Nintai's hair, and the petals are falling slowly just like the trees that surround the lowered portion of space.

She turns her attention to the large lotus buds floating in the water. Each one is a light purple, varying from near white to a soft lavender. Each one reminds Nintai of her hair color. _Don't tell me._ She looks back up to the tree. _Patience?_

The tree bark seems to brighten, as if the living thing itself was experiencing happiness. A soft smile spreads across Nintai's face. Her ears catch the sound of a sharp intake of breath. Looking to Kasumimaru, she sees no change in his position. His muscles, however, seem much tighter than they were when he'd been meditating. _Hmmm…_

"If you'd like…" she starts, watching him with glee as he jumps at the sound of her voice. "If you'd like, you can go ahead and do whatever it was you were doing a little bit ago."

Looking over his shoulder at her, Nintai remarks that his mask is on here, whereas she could swear that she'd removed it in reality. Dreams are definitely funny; who on earth dreams themselves up wearing a mask. He turns back to the tree and takes a deep breath, releasing it slowly.

Trying to think of something she can do, Nintai looks around for inspiration. Without a better idea, she jumps to the enlarged lily pad, making it rock and him jump. _He's not actually meditating, is he?_ His reaction reminded her of her father's whenever he visits. The man jumps just as easily as her father when her dad is faced with an angry daughter.

Holding back a giggle, which seems rather girly to her, she sits down on his left, her legs folded underneath and her feet bearing the majority of her weight. _This can't be more awkward._ Well aware of herself and him, Nintai sits quietly, her eyes on the roots of the tree beneath the water's surface.

"Tell me something."

Nintai jumps, remarking to herself at the same time how easily people can be surprised when overly aware. She turns her attention to the man sitting next to her. He's still staring at the tree straight ahead.

"How did you manage it?"

"Huh?" _Manage what?_

"To beat me that first time. To surprise me the second. How did you manage to beat me and my men then, but fail to defend yourself when we cornered you?"

Nintai stares at his profile for a few seconds, then bites her lip. Noticing this, Kasumimaru turns his full attention to her, not understanding her reaction. The girl sitting next to him is trying to keep herself from laughing, although, in her defense, that was one question she honestly never saw coming.

Before she can get complete control over herself, the girl is laughing hysterically, falling onto her side and hold her stomach as a cramp forms. Even so, she continues to laugh for several minutes, making the man she'd been sitting next to turn slightly red. The sight of that reaction drives her laughter further.

"What!?"

Clamping her hands over her mouth, Nintai tries the best she can to stop the giggles from escaping. She has to admit, the question is a good one, but an answer is pretty obvious if he'd simply thought about it.

"I failed to protect myself, heh heh, because I just didn't want to fight back..."

The look on his face at her words brings a new wave of giggles and Nintai quickly bites her lip and covers her mouth. To her, that look on a guy who has been trying to kill her is hilarious._ I never thought I'd see a guy like him seem so confused… or cute!_

And it's true, the look of confusion and thinking on his face makes Nintai completely adore him. Although she intends to keep the 'cute' comment to herself. _I should draw him as a chibi. He'd be so adorable! And every girl at school will want a one! …That could make me a lot of cash._ Her simple thought makes the laughter all the harder to contain. Forcing the last of the chuckles and giggles away for later, the girl gets back into her sitting position.

"So, why would you care?"

"It's been bothering me, that's all."

Nintai rolls her eyes. "Wow, that answer's not obvious at all."

A sharp glare from him does nothing to her nerves. In this place, she has the upper hand; Hantai could just float over and save her from anything this guy tries. Shrugging at the look he gives her, she sees the sparks and spirit in his eyes cool off. He turns his attention away from her and back to the tree.

"Would you like to know her name?"

His eyes narrow at her words. "I already know your name."

Nintai bites her lip to stop another chuckle. "Not me… the tree."

Kasumimaru looks at her blankly, then nods. _It's so cute, I just can't NOT laugh!_ How could she possibly keep a straight face when he acts like that?

"It's patience."

As they look at the tree, Nintai feels a vague sense of misery. Not her own, of course. She's figured out her problems and is solving them. The misery she feels is coming from somewhere else, and it doesn't take her much more than a few seconds to find the source.

"Is something wrong?" A simple question, but from her, it's like a blessing to his ears.

"That easy to tell?"

A soft smile spreads across her lips. "Naturally. I've been digging into people's problems since I was little; I can tell when someone's trying to hide something and when it's important. Your issue is bad enough that trying to hide it only made it all the more obvious."

Kasumimaru gives her an assessing look. After a moment, he dives into a random issue that Nintai can tell he just came up with to avoid his actual problem. Something about how his men aren't doing their best or have been failing an awful lot.

"So, then, maybe you're the issue."

He flinches, most likely expecting something kind and encouraging.

"Think about it a bit more. You're the one not letting them in on the secrets of their progress. You're the one hiding it. If you're so upset about it, then just talk about it. Now, why don't you try not lying to me?"

Sighing to himself, he shakes his head. "Why on earth would I talk to some random person about my issues? I can handle them myself."

Smiling, Nintai comes up with several reasons why he should take advantage of her offer. _One, talking can help. Two, because you know no one else will ever ask. Three, because I- No! Stop it!_ Finally, she gets up from her spot and turns around.

"If you were hoping for some form of encouragement for a non-existent problem, I'm sorry. But even with that small bit of encouragement, your real problem wouldn't have been fixed, would it?"

She takes one last look at him before starting back across the lily pads to the other side. _Well, at least I talked to him… sort of._ Landing on the grass, she sneaks a peek over her shoulder as she pretends to readjust her clothes. The sight of him sitting there staring off hurts her deeply. _Alright, already! I'm well aware of how I feel! But I won't be here much longer so get over it!_

With her feet moving once more, Nintai starts up the slope with a hole in her chest and a wish that she'd never gone across the waters to talk to him. Behind her, the tree patience loses a little brightness.

* * *

Opening her eyes, Nintai sees his shoulder. Immediately, she backs off, letting go of his arm. _I guess I'm more honest in my sleep._ The slight pink tinge in her cheeks fades as she forces her heart beat to slow down. She notices that the blue pendant she'd left on the ground before falling asleep is now resting on his chest.

"Good morning, ko."

"Stupid tactician," she mutters.

"Oh, how you wound me."

"Whatever. You're the reason the space with Hantai became a chat room, aren't you?"

The blue glow of the pendant is still there, but the tactician inside remains quiet. Glaring at the stone for a few seconds, she picks it up of Kasumimaru's chest and slips the string of the necklace over her head. Checking to see that the man's bandages are still good, Nintai gets up to her feet and moves to her friends.

Lee and Nami are sitting at a fire, eating a morning stew. A third bowl is still steaming and waiting for Nintai as she sits down with them.

"We need to get going soon."

The other two look up at her, surprised. They'd been here a few days, sure, but leaving now meant leaving the ninja behind by themselves. Although, them staying behind no longer held any moral merit; their bandages and antiseptic are out, not to mention that the girls themselves could use a little time away from all the boyness around them.

So, although they feel a little iffy about it, Lee and Nami nod agreement.

"But what about ninja boy back there?"

"I thought you were being quiet," Nintai says nonchalantly as the glowing pendant softly mutters to himself.

"Well, the stupid tactician is right, Nintai," Lee points out.

"Hey! Not you, too!"

Thinking about it for a second, Nintai looks over her shoulder. "As much as it pains me to not make sure he wakes up, I don't think we can spare any more time here. Sayori's waiting for me, along with the idiot bodyguards that are supposed to be with her."

As she says this, Nintai hears the shouts of a few ninja who'd gone hunting. As they sprint into the clearing, the girls see why. Behind them are another group of ninja, no injuries whatsoever, but obviously from the battle a few days ago. All of them turn their eyes to the girls, who continue to sit there and eat.

Lee and Nami finish their as the hunters who'd gone out rush up to them. "We're so sorry. We should have made sure you three were okay with this," the closest streams in one breath.

"Stop." Nintai's voice reaches well past the moving ninja as they stop before the gathered girls. "You don't need to apologize about it. They're your friends and your comrades, so of course they can be here. We're the outsiders, not them."

Lee and Nami look at each and nod.

"She's right," Lee starts. "We're the ones overstaying here."

"Absolutely. You're friends have every right to be here," joins Nami. "After all, they're the ones who know you all best."

The ninja who'd been with them for the past few days realize immediately what the girls are doing. Most accept it easily, a few not as much, but all of them are well aware of the decision the girls have and are ready to respect it.

Getting up from their seats, the girls grab their bags from nearby and move through the camp, checking all the wounded one more time as they say their goodbyes. The vast majority are smiling at them, wishing them luck; the minority are smiling as well, but theirs are sad ones, wishing the girls didn't have to leave. A few days with them and those around them had realized how pure-hearted and well managed the girls are.

Some of the men who talk to Nintai ask if she honestly intends to leave their leader the way he is. "There's nothing more I can do for him. Besides, he won't talk to me, even if he does wake up. I believe he's one of those people who refuses to 'burden' others with his problems or issues."


	13. Walking Towards Home

The girls are swinging, jumping and running through the trees once more. Nintai, at the front, stays quiet as she watches around her. The experience from the days she's been followed have instilled the habit to keep an eye out. The battles have instilled the trust in the pendant on her neck. And the travelling has instilled a value on physical fitness. Everything put together has made Nintai extremely grateful for her natural affiliation for all of this.

Lee and Nami, a few meters behind, are talking to each other about their friend's decision. The way Lee sees it, the girl should have asked them to go ahead and find Sayori without her. Nami sees it differently; she should be going with them, instead going back later to make sure he's alright.

"Yeah, and then it seems to him like she thinks she made a mistake."

"Really," Nami rolls her eyes.

"C'mon! You want to see her smiling, too! Why not show her which way to go?"

"This coming from the girl who said to leave the 'couple' alone."

Lee stays silent. The girls continue to move through the trees for several hours.

* * *

Waking up from a dream can often times be disappointing. A person can expect to be in their fantasy world once they wake up and the world they do see ends up falling short. Someone can believe that neither world they walk in is real, which leaves the question of what the real world actually looks like. Then there are those who know they've been dreaming and refuse to admit that they wish they weren't.

Those people who refuse to admit their feelings find themselves in a place much like Kasumimaru's. They feel a sense of emptiness and loathing, yes, but that feeling is blocked by another thought. What's happening?

The ninja leader sits up underneath a tree. Around him is his squad, healed and happily chatting around fires. The entire area is full of talk about three girls, and he has a feeling about who they are. It takes only an hour for him to understand that everyone has developed a fondness for the girls, many because they stayed behind to help and heal the men they'd wounded. Others because the girl's kindness had helped everyone's spirits rise.

"They went so far for their enemies, even though their own comrades probably still have no idea that they're alive."

"Not sure if it was dedication, humanity, or just plain stupidity."

"Those girls did a lot, although their motives are still pretty unclear."

No matter where he turns, the ninja leader can find no qualms with the girls, except maybe the lack of reasoning. Not one man in his unit could tell him why they stayed behind. All except for one of the rather young men. He points out something everyone else admits that they were avoiding.

"She seemed rather interested in you."

"She?"

The ninja nods. "Miss Nintai."

"Miss?"

The ninja around him shrug and look away. It's a term he'd been hearing left and right. These girls definitely won his men's hearts, and it looks to him like the guys weren't planning on taking them back.

"Lord Harumoto isn't going to be pleased."

* * *

Back flipping off a branch, Nintai falls to the ground, landing on her feet in a crouch. In front of her, a man with long purple hair and a cape turns suddenly, ready to draw a sword. The look on his face sends Nintai into a fit of hysterical laughter. The man in front of her gives a baleful look and shakes his head.

"Oh, honestly. Can't you act a little more responsibly? You'll start giving Jin and Yo ideas."

Nintai smiles at Bo. Above them, Lee and Nami are holding in their laughter, trying not to give away the surprise. On the ground, a blonde man with glasses walks into view. The scowl on his face is the most frightening thing the girls in the tree have ever seen, but for some reason, Lee finds herself wanting to make the look on his face even worse.

Tugging on Nami's shirt, she mouths that she's next and moves silently among the trees, moving with the wind and the natural swaying of the branches. Sneaking around, she preps herself, waiting for Nintai to give their signal.

"Hello, psychopath!"

Ittosai glares at her, his glasses ruining the effect as the sun reflects off them. Still he doesn't curse at her, or mock how she acted, so Nintai can't help but think that maybe the man had been a little worried about her. But she still feels no regret or worry for what she's about to do.

"So, anyone _drop_ in lately?"

The next thing that occurs is Lee dropping from the branches above, landing on the blonde's shoulders as she yells,

"Ninja! Ninja!"

Ittosai doesn't hesitate to draw his sword, but Lee is faster and slips underneath the blade, sliding right up next to Nintai as they laugh about his reaction.

"That was perfect!"

The two high-five and watch inconspicuously as Nami climbs down the trees behind the boys.

"Do you want to die!?"

As Ittosai goes into a rant about slashing, hacking and overall massacre, Nami silently walks up in between the two, the largest smile on her face. Bo hasn't noticed her yet, and neither has Ittosai, and neither of them do until after Ittosai's rant is over.

"So, hacking, slashing and overall massacre, huh?"

The two jump again, and Nami ducks as a long blade slices through the air at her neck. Crouching, she holds her gut as her laughter robs her of oxygen. The other two laugh as well, Lee holding onto Nintai's shoulder, attempting to not collapse.

"Absolutely perfect," Nami manages to claim in her gasps for air.

The boys, a little perplexed by the new girls, stare a little annoyed at the group as they laugh wholeheartedly. After a few minutes of them being laughed at, the boys finally got to ask their question. The question itself is simple; the answer they want, not so much.

"Who are we?"

Nami laughs a little at the tone of Lee's voice. "Now, now. I don't think they're that stupid. They have to have some form of idea by now. Right, Nintai?"

"Leave me out of this one," is all she says.

Lee puffs her cheeks out a little. The event seems to have brought out her inner child. Stamping her foot into the dirt, she begins arguing with Nintai about the girl's statement. Nami, meanwhile talks to the two boys, avoiding any brash and childish action. Her explanation of who they are is simple, but when it comes to how they got here and why they know about the princess's problem, Nintai steps in.

"They're here to help and I trust them. That's all that's important."

Bo gives a nod, dropping the subject on his part. Ittosai glares for a few more seconds, but again the effect is ruined by reflected sunlight. As a group, the five of them start moving. It took a little persuading, since the boys were supposed to be waiting for a group of ninja to pop out and attack. But after assuring them that the problem was taken care of, which took an entire hour, the boys were ready to start moving.

Ittosai seemed a little upset, but since it's been explained to him that there are no ninja coming, he easily follows everyone. The psychotic mumblings about massacre, however, continue to flow undisturbed from his mouth… Well, maybe they're a little disturbed, but he is a psychopath, so the likelihood that they aren't is extremely low.

To Nintai's surprise, Lee even stays a few steps behind the other two girls, closer to Ittosai than anything. When pointed out to Nami, the two have a quiet laugh about it. When Bo asks what they're laughing about, and they let him in on the secret, his face becomes worried immediately.

"Is it a good idea to let her be so close?"

Nintai shrugs. "She's a big girl. She can take care of herself. Plus, I'm here. And he won't dare do anything to her or Nami unless he wants my foot up his-"

"Nintai!"

Nami's scolding voice makes the curse Nintai was about to say stop right in her throat. _The last time I cursed in front of Nami…_ She shivers slightly, afraid for her own life and keeping her mouth shut for the rest of the uphill slope in front of them. Once they reach the top, they see the castle they're headed for and the two girls besides Nintai gasp in delight.

"Oh, for the love of…"

Below them, they can see two figures sitting around lazily and resting. One with green hair and a cape. Another with… old man colored hair and rather overbuilt. The sight of the two of them lounging around brings a bright but soft smile to Nintai's face; a sight neither Bo nor Ittosai had seen unless the princess was talking to her.

Lee and Nami look at each other, thinking carefully. Then the two smile evilly towards each other and take a good look around. At their current elevation, all the hiding spots were behind rocks and boulders. The tree line is a good ten meters below where they stand. So, with even less cover than ever before, the two start sneaking through the spots, intent on catching the two sleeping forms off guard.

"Oh, geez. They just don't quit."

With a knowing smile on her face, Nintai starts down the slopes, an even more brilliant idea in her mind. Bo and Ittosai look at each other. The long haired man decides it's in his best interest to let the three girls have their fun. Ittosai decides it'd be fun to let the three girls do as they like and watch the scene unfold. One looking worried, the other pleased, the two of them follow after Nintai, who is calling out to the forms below.

At the end of the slope, lying in the shade of a large boulder, Yo, looks up to see his friends and a psychopath walking towards him. The joy he feels at seeing the girl alive and well is slightly ruined by the fact that Ittosai is as well. But seeing Bo right behind Nintai is what lifts his spirits back up.

"You're alright, Miss! Hatsuhime was worried sick!"

Nintai hears his remark and concern crosses her face immediately. Lee and Nami stop and listen to what he has to say, knowing interrupting would cause problems for Nintai's emotions. Sitting behind rocks on separate sides, they wait and listen for a word they both knew she'd say.

"She's not waiting around nearby, is she?"

Yo shakes his head and opens his mouth to speak.

"She went off to the castle with Jin and Muneshige," Mon-Mon cuts in.

Turning to him, Nintai sees Mon-Mon sunbathing on a flat area clear of rocks. Well, cleared might be more accurate. Nearby is a pile of rocks that she's sure he moved by himself to make his space, and not only that, but she's sure that her friend is hiding behind it to catch the large guy off guard.

"Hey, I was gonna tell her!" Yo goes off into a childish rant, amusing Nintai and coaxing a laugh from her.

"Ah! She laughed! Yay! I made her laugh!"

As Yo cheers happily, her laughter increases. Mon-Mon sits up, about to argue with him on who made her laugh, when she says something strange.

"Y'know, heh, it's so funny! You didn't _drop_ anything in that one!"

And then it happens. Lee jumps out from behind a boulder near Yo, tackling him to the ground and putting him in a headlock, causing him to yell incoherently about an attack and something soft. Nami jumps out from behind the pile of rocks Mon-Mon had piled up and landed on his stomach, knocking he wind from his lungs.

As the three girls and Ittosai laugh about it, Bo sighs to himself, muttering something about pranks and childish nonsense. The group seems to calm down a bit, and Nintai starts to recount her story at Yo's request. After recounting everything up to the takedown of the ninja leader, she starts to come up with some new stuff to fill in the last few days.

One detail is that her and her friends had hidden out for the first night, avoiding vengeful ninja until morning. The next day, the three had run like crazy all throughout the forest, using the heights of the tallest trees and the occasional stream to lose any pursuers. And for the rest of the time, she filled in a random person needing directions or an accidental run-in with a ninja or two. All in all, it was fairly unbelievable, but that's why Yo, Mon-Mon, and Bo seem to believe it with ease.

"No way," mutters Ittosai.

Nintai looks at him. "Do what?" she asks sweetly.

"Why is it that you three ran all around that forest, finding trouble left and right, we never found you?"

The three girls look at him with the most annoying faces he's ever seen. Almost like they're asking him to call their bluff.

"What!?"

Shaking her head, Nintai looks him in the eye. "We never found you because we ran in the opposite direction, genius. I figured that'd be obvious. Why would we run in the same direction as you guys? That's asking for the ninja to just play hide-and-seek until we reach the princess."

Ittosai's face turns a slight pink. Lee sees this and jumps in next.

"Y'know, you could've just walked ahead a little. I bet a few ninja probably slipped by you and made it to these two here."

Mon-Mon and Yo look surprised as their mentioned, but nod in confirmation. _Wow. I know Bo might overlook a few scouts in hopes of luring out a larger group, but Ittosai?_ With that thought in mind, Nintai looks closely at the blonde man, noticing the pink tinge to his cheeks._ Is that embarrassment!?_

Covering her mouth, Nintai holds in the laughter she feels rising. As she listens to the banter between Lee and Ittosai, she gains the attention of Bo and asks if they should just leave them there. The thought seems to tempt him, but he shakes his head, saying that would just cause more problems for everyone later on.

Giving him a skeptical look, Nintai shrugs and calls for everyone's attention. Although they stop bickering, it's obvious Lee and Ittosai are far from done with their argument. Nami and Nintai give each other knowing looks and swallow their chuckles as Nintai announces that the group is moving out.

Together, they all continue back into the trees.

* * *

Kasumimaru is standing before Harumoto, his shoulder and arm still bandaged. As his lord looks at the white wrappings, his displeasure is obvious in his eyes. The look itself would chill any man's heart and turn them into cowering fools. But Kasumimaru knows better than to act like that now. He'd failed his mission, and as such would accept his punishment with dignity.

"Do I want to know what happened?"

Staying silent, the ninja leader stares back at his lord, awaiting the final judgment he believes to be coming. Shaking his head, Harumoto does something worse than sentencing the ninja to some horrible torture or agonizing cruelty.

"I guess it's a good thing I expected as much."

The hole in his chest from the uncertainty he already felt from his dream grows wider from the pain of those words. Having failed was one thing, but being expected to fail is another entirely. If his lord never expected him to succeed on this mission, then doing his best was probably pointless. With that thought in the back of his mind, Kasumimaru manages to keep a straight face as those words replay unpleasantly in his head.

"Get out. I'll deal with you later."

Bowing gracefully, Kasumimaru vanishes into thin air. Harumoto takes one look at a report about his brother's death on the highway, then turns around to grab a small pouch from a box on a low shelf. Standing up from his chair, he retrieves a sword from off of the wall and slides it into his sash.

"I'll just have to deal with it myself."

* * *

Staring at the castle's walls lit up by the lowering sun, Nintai feels uneasy about the looming building. Something tells her that going there will cause problems, create an issue that she may not be able to resolve. But knowing Sayori is inside that building compels her to move forward anyways.

She listens to the guys as they chat animatedly with Nami and Lee about Nintai and her unknown aspects. When asking about how she'd been before the age of ten, they direct their questions toward the former babysitter. After ten is Lee's area of expertise. Hearing about the perspectives of her friends gives Nintai a sense of awareness she'd used only since she'd arrived here through the pendant.

Using this awareness, she scans the area around her out of habit, just trying to find something of interest to focus on as the town built in front of the castle approaches. What she finds, though gives her a bad feeling about what's ahead.

In the trees of the forest is a single persimmon tree, and standing next to it is a man with long silver hair and a mask covering the lower half of his face. _Kasumimaru?_ She makes eye contact, and motions for her to come and talk. Taking a look at her friends, chatting away, she thinks of a single comment they're unlikely to notice.

"I'm gonna grab a snack from that tree. I'll catch up."

The others acknowledge what she says midconversation but dive right back into their own little world. Ittosai seems to notice something, but the carefree smile she gives him send him off with the others. After taking it slow for the first few moments, checking over her shoulder once, she breaks into a sprint, entering the tree line within seconds. _It's good being fast._

She makes a beeline for the persimmon tree and looks up to see Kasumimaru hiding in the leaves. _It also seems to be good being cautious. Glad Ittosai was too slow to notice him._ Giving a brief smile, she starts to climb the tree, not letting the ninja have a chance to join her on the ground. Sitting on a branch at midheight, Nintai looks at the fruit around her and plucks one off. Looking at Kasumimaru, level with her but on the other side of the tree, she gestures for him to go ahead, biting into the fruit.

"I'm only doing this because I owe you, got it?"

Nintai rolls her eyes and swallows the juices and fruit she'd chewed. "If you owed me, I'd have called on that favor quite a while ago. Heck, I probably would have woken you up and told you tell me everything."

Kasumimaru glares at her. "I still wouldn't have told you."

"And then any debt you might have had would've increased."

Still glaring, Kasumimaru moves to his reason for being her, albeit a bit reluctantly. "You helped my men and me when you stayed behind. I have to pay you back somehow."

Nintai sighs and holds up her hand to stop him. Looking a bit annoyed Kasumimaru doesn't continue. Gathering her thoughts as she stares at the highway just before the town, Nintai moves through the memory of her dream with him.

"If you really want to repay me," she starts, still staring at the road, "then you can go with whatever it was you were hiding when we were with Patience."

He looks at her surprised. To him, all that had been was a simple dream; a fantasy he'd refused to acknowledge and only gave a single outlet. Outside of that one night of sleep, he'd stayed away from that part of his mind, avoiding the thought of her completely.

"What do you mean by 'patience'?"

Smiling, Nintai looks at him. "The large cherry tree, remember? If you'd like, I'll recall all the details for you."

She can tell he forces back a blush, knowing that he's trying to repress the thoughts of that dream and managing to succeed. _Hmmm… that could be fun._ A soft smile is fixed to her face as she watches him.

"First off, I sat on you left side, right?" He doesn't move or say anything, just watches her. "Secondly, you started the conversation by asking me about how I let myself be cornered." Slight astonishment registers for a fraction of a second, but disappears immediately. "Then I laughed hysterically and you turned red."

The mention of her laughing at him brought the memory to mind, and that strange feeling of embarrassment as well. Without realizing it, he'd started turning red. Nintai, though, notices it with ease and decides to keep going.

"I kept laughing and you kept being red. I eventually gain the ability to talk again and tell you why I didn't defend myself, which completely confused you, which was also funny, so I started laughing yet again. Then-"

"Alright! I get it!"

With an annoyed look on his reddened face, Kasumimaru pulls a fruit from the tree and cleans it off. He then pulls his mask down and starts eating it, taking a large bite. _Binge eating? Really?_ The thought makes her want to laugh again, but she bites her lip to stop herself. Seeing this reaction, he turns to her and glares, knowing that she's trying not to laugh.

"So," she says, hoping to stop her laughter by changing her train of thought. "Are you going to tell me what was bothering you or not?"

"Not," he speaks with his mouth full.

"Aww. Why?"

"Because it has nothing to do with you." He takes the last bite

Looking at the persimmon in her hand, Nintai sighs and resigns herself. "Then what were you planning on doing to pay me back?"

Swallowing the fruit in his mouth, he turns to her. "Your precious princess isn't safe in that castle. And neither are you or your teammates."

She stares at him skeptically. The idea that Sayori isn't safe in the home of a princess makes no sense to her. And the idea that she isn't safe either seems completely ridiculous. _This is definitely a joke. But I'm not laughing._ He sighs to himself, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.

"Lord Harumoto is extremely displeased with my performance lately. As a result, he intends to deal with the problem at hand himself."

Nintai's face manages to become even more skeptical before a small smile breaks out on her face. _I know his problem._ The statement about his performance is what gave him away. _He's been worried not about his men's performance, but his own._

"You really are annoying, you know that?"

She slides off her branch and down to the ground, smiling happily to herself. Despite the glare she feels from above, she keeps talking.

"There's no point in worrying about whether you're good enough or not. If you can do something, you can do it." She feels his glare weaken as her words reach his ears. "If you can't, you can't. And if you have trouble with something, you train yourself so you don't have any trouble with it later on. That's how things evolve and grow."

The pendant around her neck begins to glow faintly and Nintai knows it's time to leave. Calling back a simple goodbye, she walks off, taking a bite of her persimmon as she goes. Once back on the highway, she angles her path toward the castle and her friend while hoping the ninja she'd left in the tree takes her words to heart.

"It's amazing, sometimes. I honestly can't believe that I actually have any wisdom."


	14. A Last Stand Or Fall

In a moment of childish delight, Nintai scales the castle walls and sneaks into the building. After hiding from servants and guards alike, she sneaks through the hallways trying to find one of her friends to scare. Or, of course, Harumoto wouldn't be a bad person to run across right now. Being able to tackle him and tie him up would bring her great satisfaction. Even better would be the look on his face as a unit of guards dragged him off to a dungeon to be tortured.

Thinking about how cruel her thoughts had just been, Nintai listens for any sounds. What reaches her ears are footsteps, many footsteps, and a lot of drunken slurring, as if a party was going on. _That's definitely where Mon-Mon would be. I guess he's a start._ Quietly, and avoiding the drunken guards purely out of caution, Nintai creeps to a side door and slides it open. On the other side is a scene that worries her greatly.

Nami and Lee are dancing with a few random guards. Lee, for some reason, has earned a constant glare from Ittosai, who leans against the back wall with his sword in hand. The blonde notices her, but turns his attention back to Lee immediately. Mon-Mon and Muneshige are singing a song about the greatness of life to a large audience of men in guard uniforms. Bo is sitting with another, smaller group of men, talking about Jin's lack of composure. Jin, on the other side of that group, argues in angst. Yo sits unhappily in a corner, probably because several of the guards refused to let him drink when he looks like a little boy.

Noticing the girl in the doorway, Yo immediately jumps to his feet and rushes up to hug her, whining.

"Nintai! They're leaving me out!"

Giggling, Nintai pats him on the back. "Aww. It's alright. I'm not planning on staying in here and drinking, so you can come with me if you want."

He looks at her incredulously. "Why? Do you need to be somewhere?"

Nintai shakes her head. "I just don't want to be around when Lee suggests-"

"Time to compare! Who's first, boys!"

"I'm leaving."

Yo follows Nintai out of the room and soon they hear the sounds of painful shrieks and cries behind them. Yo looks back, horrified, but Nintai grabs ahold of his arm and drags him with, repeating that he should just ignore it. Together, the two walk the castle looking for the princess.

"Last time I saw her, that old man named Yahei was talking to her in the gardens."

Yo informs Nintai on the scene the group had seen upon arriving at the castle. Sayori had been holding onto Jin's arm as if he was the only lifeline she had. Muneshige didn't seem too pleased about this, but when asked, he shrugged and said he was happy if she was.

"And by the looks of it, she seemed very happy to be holding onto Jin."

"Wow." _Sayori, you've gotten braver, haven't you?_

The two walk down another hallway and slide open a door to the gardens outside. Walking into the flowers and trees, they search for the old man and the princess with Sayori in control. It doesn't take long to find Yahei, but the state he's in fires up red flags in Nintai's mind. The sun has started to set, and the orange and red hue it gives off lights up the world in a crimson-like glow.

There, on the ground and unconscious, lies an old man with a wound on his upper shoulder. The years may have slowed him down, but his reflexes seem to have been good enough to spare his life.

Yo rushes up to him and shakes him, trying to wake him up but to no avail. Nintai stares blankly, trying to think but unable to process what's in front of her. _He's hurt. She's gone. He's hurt. She's gone. He's hurt. She's gone._ Nothing else runs through her mind as she watches Yo work and run off. But she does manage to hear a rasping noise.

"-ower… Please…"

"Huh?"

"The… tower… please…"

Nintai watches as the old man manages to point towards a tower at the opposite end of the castle complex. A watchtower of great height stands against the sky, attempting to reach the heavens but unable to without the help of a miracle. _She's there._

Without waiting to think things through, Nintai starts to run.

* * *

Jin and Yo, knowing better than to stir up everyone else, especially since everyone else is drunk, are rushing off to the gardens When they open one of any doors into it, they see Nintai rush by them at top speed. They look at each other for a second, then nod and rush after her.

"You said that he was attacked, right?"

"Yeah," Yo confirms. "He was trying to say something, but he didn't have enough strength. And Nintai seemed in shock, too, so I came for you."

"Wow. I was actually first pick!" Jin beams with pride.

"Well, actually I was going for Bo, but he's drunk like everyone else and you were the only sober one." Jin's face falls dramatically. "Why are you the only one sober?"

"Don't ask."

* * *

Through the sound of wind in her ears as she rushes the door, Nintai hears alarms starting to go off. Somewhere nearby she hears another voice as she slams into the door once more, sending a shocking jolt throughout her entire side.

"Move!"

She jumps back and watches as a black blur with a red top flies by and slams into the door, breaking it open and tearing it off its hinges. Turning to another voice, Nintai sees Yo with a smile.

"You two go on up, I'm gonna get some insurance set up down here."

"I'll help!"

Bo runs up to them and starts talking to Yo as they move away, pulling their capes off their shoulders. Nintai looks into the building to see Jin wobbly standing back up. Not waiting for him to regain his coordination, she grabs his wrist and pulls him up the stairs. As they rush by window after window up flight after flight, Nintai and Jin notice the sunset through the openings they pass. _It seems like that setting sun is a bad thing._

When they finally reach the top, the two see a ladder and move towards it. At the end of the ladder is a trap door just waiting to be opened, and from the other side, Nintai can make out the sound of Sayori's voice.

"Wait right here," Jin says. "I'll head up first. And when I charge him, I want you to jump out and make a grab for Hatsuhime."

Nintai nods, unable to think of any plans for the moment. Staying put, she watches as Jin climbs the ladder and pushes the trap door open. Once he's standing on the roof and has let go of the door, the wind from the height slams it shut. Flinching once, Nintai listens carefully to all the sounds around her. Picking out the voices, she recognizes Sayori's once more, then Jin's, and last is a voice unfamiliar to her.

"Harumoto?"

Kasumimaru had told her that the man had decided to take care of the problem himself. _Now that I think about it, if I'd walked with everyone else, would we even know that Sayori had been dragged here?_ Silently thanking the ninja for stopping her on the highway, Nintai's ears ring painfully. Above her, Jin's screaming in agony and Sayori is calling to him, trying to calm him down.

Not thinking about it, Nintai rushes up the ladder and pushes on the trap door. The first thing she notices is a faint powder in the air. Quickly, she covers her mouth and nose, trying to block the powder, and pulls her shirt up over the bottom half of her face. _Kinda wish I had that ninja's mask now._ She climbs up onto the roof, letting the trap door slam once more.

In front of her is a man with shoulder length purple hair, a blade in his hand, and dressed in the usual Japanese lord clothes. _Isn't he the guy from the tunnel? The one that we saw just before that girl's scream?_ It clicks in her head that Hatsuhime had good reason to call on her and Sayori. This guy is one major problem.

Sayori is held around her neck by his arm, probably being deprived of oxygen. The look on her face at Nintai's appearance is one of pure joy. The thoughts running through Nintai's head right now are mostly about how best to chop the man holding Sayori into minced meat. Pushing him off the building is one way, of course, but she wants the guy to pay for the hell that he's put the girls through.

Right now, with those wayward thoughts, she still isn't noticing the imminent threat of the powder as bits of it manage to get through her shirt. The man in front of her, with his arm nearly choking Sayori, is assessing the newcomer intently. Seeing no threat, however, a cruel smile goes across his face. Another way to deal with him flits through Nintai's mind; his underestimation of her has picked at the time-bomb that is her pride.

Jin, moaning and twitching on the roof tiles, is completely useless right now. The ideas in her head all require someone of use to be nearby. Everything she's been capable of requires the pendant on her chest to have a chance to assess and guide her through the motions. As wonderful as all her experience has been, the only thing she can relate this moment to would be when that girl at her last high school had framed her.

Nintai had stood by that day and let her do as she pleased simply because she didn't think that whatever the girl was going to do could possibly affect her in any way. She didn't believe that the girl would be able to implicate her in anything that could get her expelled and force her to transfer. And all because she wanted to be class president.

"Well?"

Nintai jumps, realizing that the guy had been talking just now. "I'm sorry, you were ranting about something and I wasn't exactly caring. What's the general idea?"

Harumoto narrows his eyes, trying to see through any trickery or plot she has going. "I'd just said that you're a fool for coming up here."

Nintai smiles, but hidden behind her shirt, he barely recognizes the expression. "How so? Do enlighten me, oh great master of nothing."

"Nintai," Sayori calls, "Be careful! The powder, it's-"

"A hallucinogen. Rather rare, quite expensive, too, I bet. Probably something the idiot didn't want to resort to since its rarity and price make it easy to track."

Harumoto chuckles. "How bright of you. You're nowhere near as stupid as I thought you were."

"You're nowhere near as menacing as I thought you'd be."

He glares at Nintai. _C'mon, just a little more time._ She wants to buy as much time for Yo and Bo and whoever else below to set up the savior plan they'd decided on.

"Very cute, little girl."

"I tend to be, little brat."

His eyes full of annoyance and growing anger, Harumoto's hand around Sayori's neck loosens slightly. From within the hand, Nintai notices a white dust spreading in the breeze. _The hallucinogen. It's impossible to avoid, but if I can just figure out what kind…_ The scent is familiar to her, the taste in her mouth reminding her of something she's forgotten. _I can't do a memory restoration now! It's too late!_

"You really should be more respectful to your betters." Finally, a topic she can turn around.

"You really should be more respectful to your subordinates, dum dum."

Harumoto raises in eyebrow in challenge. "Oh? Do enlighten me, brat of no worth."

Smiling at the comment and how little it means to her, Nintai dives in, playing off what she figured out from Kasumimaru. "You expect so little, and yet when someone does well, you say it's natural for them to have done well, as if doing well is something that can occur every time. You treat them like expendable assets with no hearts or souls, as if they're existence is nothing more than a mere coincidence compared to yours. You act selfishly, with no thought to those you don't see or know.

"You are one of multiple monsters that I exist to deal with. And you better pray that you're not so tainted as to be unsavable."

Harumoto laughs at her, and she waits quietly, trying to notice some sign that the backup plan is set up and ready to go in case Sayori should fall. Jin continues to whimper on the ground while Sayori tries calling to him one more time, with no success. _What a pain._ Harumoto's laughter finally fades from her agitated ears. _He's so annoying._

Pulling the shirt from her face, Nintai walks over to Jin and takes a good look at him. He makes it difficult, though, and won't move in any way. With the shirt down, she smells the powder all the more clearly. The memory is stirring, but not enough to unlock without her going in and reliving it.

"Alright, this is ridiculous." She stands up to full height and stares at Harumoto. "You have ten seconds to let go of her. If not, I'll make you."

Harumoto laughs at her even harder, making Sayori wince as the sound enters her ear. He's being way too loud.

"Nintai!"

The sound of the trap door opening behind her and Lee's voice give her a clear understanding, and she thinks about how useless men can be and how useful they can be at the same time. A faint smile fixes itself on her face.

"I know, Lee. I know. The left, right? Just go back down."

Hearing the trap door slam shut once more, Nintai watches Harumoto and Sayori as she listens to Jin's fading whines. The sun behind Harumoto is only a half hour from being completely set. Something is telling Nintai that she needs to get Sayori and Jin down from the roof soon. On her chest, the pendant finally makes a sound.

"You know, you can always rush the guy. He's no swordsman."

Nintai stares at Harumoto's sword hand, griping the hilt loosely. "He seems pretty comfortable with one, though."

"That doesn't mean skilled."

The smile turns to a smirk as she laughs to herself, giving Harumoto whose watching her mouth move as if she's talking to someone a sense of disturbance. No sane person talks to themselves at times like this, nor do they do so while their enemy is watching. The bag in his hand has completely emptied, and yet the girl's only sign of change is that she talks to herself. This fact worries the cruel man to no end.

"Tell me something, little girl."

"Why should I?"

"Is there a particular reason you're trying to save this spoiled brat?"

Nintai smiles warmly. "Of course there is. To me, Sayori was the first lit sign. She's irreplaceable."

"Sayori," he mimics.

"Oops," she says blandly. "Did I say that out loud?" The sarcasm in her voice is clear.

Harumoto stares at the girl he holds. "So then, they switched out the princess with some other identical?"

"Sure," Nintai drones, "let's go with that."

Sayori looks defeated, her identity revealed and thereby acknowledging that she'd been lying about herself during the entire journey. Everything she'd done to hide that she wasn't the princess went up in smoke before her very eyes. Truth be told, she has no idea where the real princess is, or if this body is actually hers. Staring at Nintai for a few seconds, Sayori sees her friend looking unconcerned.

"Sayori."

"What, ane?"

"You trust me completely, right?"

Nodding her head, Sayori worries about what's coming next. In her experience, whenever her friend says that, something potentially threatening is about to occur.

"Good. Now then, see that ledge to your right?"

"You want me to jump off it, don't you," Sayori whimpers.

Beaming a bright smile, Nintai nods slowly. "Be a good girl, now. And have a nice trip! Make sure to remember freshman self-defense as well."

Sighing to herself, Sayori brings her arm forward then back, slamming her elbow into Harumoto's gut and robbing him of air. She then moves right, slipping from his grip and rushing toward the edge, not questioning what she's doing.

"Going, Jin?"

The red head is standing, barely, watching as a girl who's supposed to be a princess runs and jumps from the edge of the roof. He doesn't wait to think and follows, diving after her.

"Well, now what? You've lost what little chance you have of winning."

Harumoto laughs, his breath caught. "Are you insane? She just committed suicide." The smirk on Nintai's face worries him to no end. "What?"

"Check the ground, smart guy."

Following his line of sight as it changes, Nintai sees only the edge of the roof. Harumoto, like a fool, slides up to edge, crouches and looks over. At the bottom, he sees Jin and the princess climbing out of a net. The sight drains the blood from his face and brings him to boiling point as rage and frustration build up to the max limit. His glare at Nintai causes the girl to shiver slightly.

"You may think I've lost, but I'm well aware that you've breathed in plenty of this." He holds up the empty bag.

Nintai smiles softly, chuckling to herself. "That stuff? Please. I'm immune to drugs like that. I can't even sleep using prescription sleep aids. My aunt was dumb enough to overdose me and build my immunity towards them. That little drug is nothing more than a fragrance to me."

His look of disbelief is evident. Nintai moves her feet and starts to walk toward him slowly. The horror in his expression tell her exactly what he's thinking. _I know. I'm a monster. I also know that I'm only human._

"You're mistake is that you thought killing off the princess would save your clan. But it won't. This clan of yours, which you fought so desperately to change, will cease to exist after a few more generations. Its very structure has already begun to crumble as the new philosophies taking root in this land remove people from their traditions."

Harumoto, now right in front of her, still crouching, is frozen.

"What's more, there's another mistake that you've made."

He seems almost too shocked, but Nintai waits for his word with the intention of staying silent until he speaks.

Finally, he gets the idea. "What?"

She leans forward with an innocent smile on her face, pulling the pendant over her head and tossing the string over his. "You stole this idiot tactician's body."

And with that, she puts her hand on his shoulder and pushes. As he falls down to the net below, she notices the blue glow following him. The pendant around his neck is one she's very familiar with and has relied on during multiple events. _I pray that you can take it back, you stupid tactician._

With a fond smile, Nintai turns away from the now set sun and starts for the trap door. Beneath her feet, several flights of stairs below, a group of explosives with lit fuses are reaching their detonation. It takes only 3… 2… 1… 0.

Just as she pulls open the trap door, the explosives below go off. Feeling the shaking of the tow and seeing the inferno below grow instantly, Nintai slams the door shut and leaves it like that. _I'm not going down that way._ She rushes back to the edge, seeing the men at the bottom scurrying in a panic. The net, broken from Harumoto's fall, is lying on the ground, useless.

At the tower's base, Sayori and the bodyguards watch Nintai as she paces back and forth on the roof. Lee and Nami are nowhere to be found. Still pacing at the top, Nintai can find no way down, short of jumping to her death. The height is too much for her to survive, even with her body developed into a state of fitness. With no options, Nintai sits down on the edge of the roof and looks up at the darkening sky. A star, the first of the night, has made its appearance.

"What I wouldn't give to just float around all night long."

Resigned to her fate, the girl lies back and waits for either the flames to get to her or the building to crumble. Beneath her, her friend has burst into tears, collapsed to her knees and bawling with no sign of stopping. While Jin tries to comfort her, the other five bodyguards try to force their pressured minds to come up with a plan. They come up with nothing.

Farther away, watching the climbing flames, a group of black clad men stare with immense interest, each one praying that the girls they'd come to care for sustain no injury. Their leader is nowhere to be found.

"C'mon. Make it," is all a single ninja can manage to say.

Back on the top of the tower, Nintai has closed her eyes, trying to reach Hantai and spend her last few minute reliving her memories. No such luck on that front, though. Opening her eyes back up, she pulls her body back into a sitting position. Heat from the flames below is already reaching her body, overheating her feet in her shoes.

"Oh, what the hell."

She pulls shoes and socks off, tossing them towards the moat surrounding the castle. She watches them plummet and hit the water with a satisfying splash. Then a thought occurs to her. _What the hell. It works in movies, doesn't it?_ Using Hollywood logic and forcing herself to believe in it, Nintai climbs to her feet and starts moving across the tiles of the roof.

Standing at the corner, she takes another look at the moat, recognizing a figure standing next it and watching her. Alongside him are two girls, holding what she can only expect to be towels and a change of clothes. With a smile on her lips, she takes several steps back. _If he's waiting there, it should be safe._

Taking a running start, Nintai launches herself of the corner of the roof. Reaching the top of her arch, she slowly begins to fall back to the earth, gaining speed as she drops. Angling herself, the wind she feels on her back pushes her further and further from the tower and its flames. Everyone within the castle walls stops and watches her descent, as if she was a falling star.


	15. Back Home

Feeling the chilling cold around her, and lacking oxygen, Nintai sinks further into the water. A warm hand grabs hold of her wrist and pulls on it, dragging her back up to the surface. Breaching the water and spluttering out some that had made it into her mouth, Nintai gasps for air. An arm goes around her waist and pulls. She doesn't resist; whoever it is, they obviously know what they're doing. Soon she feels even more hands grabbing hold of her and pulling.

The memory of what she'd just done replays in her mind, over and over. It's the only thing registering to her sense right now. The wind from falling had torn at her clothes and made her eyes mist. Her hair had whipped all over, striking her face everywhere it could. Finally, she saw his face as her body had hit the moat's waters.

Reliving this over and over, falling in and flying out so many times, Nintai begins to feel drained. Finally, Hantai stops a single descent and the cycle is broken. Looking around tiredly, she finds herself collapsed on a lily pad in front of Patience. Nearby, Hantai floats, a concerned look on her face. Just past the floating girl, jumping across the lily pads, Kasumimaru is coming for her, fear and worry etched into his skin.

It's the last thing she sees in her mental world before closing her eyes and trying to truly sleep. The last thing she hears is someone calling her name, and the last thing she feels is someone holding her gently. No dreams came to her that night.

* * *

Nintai opens her eyes to a wooden beam ceiling. Beneath her she can feel a futon, and covering her she can feeling a warm blanket. On her head is a cold cloth, soaked with freezing cold water, but it was rather refreshing and the reason why comes rather easily to her. _I've got a cold._ Barely breathing through her nose, Nintai reaches up and removes the cloth, tossing it to the side and landing it in a bucket. _Awesome. Kinda wish someone had recorded that._

Sitting up, she see Sayori sleeping near the wall. And not just any Sayori, but the real Sayori. Her body is her own, although she is clothed in a kimono, and her haircut is the way it should be. Feeling the heat going through her body from a fever, Nintai shakes her head to clear it, regretting it instantly as the blood swishes around. _Oh, light head._

Waiting for her brains to settle, Nintai takes a good look at her friend. There're no marks anywhere, at least, no visible ones. Her kimono seems brand new, which is surprising to Nintai as her friend refuses to let anyone buy her new clothes, excluding the girl's parents. But the horrible part is that she sleeping on the bare floor, no blanket.

"It's bad enough I have a cold, stupid," she mutters to herself.

Climbing out of the futon, she pulls at the blanket and moves over to her friend. Tossing it over her, Nintai straightens it to cover all of Sayori. Checking it to make sure the blanket covers the girl to her satisfaction, Nintai heads for the door. After sliding it open, Nintai sees the garden, overgrown and running amok. _What…?_ The memory of what happened slides through her mind.

Sighing, she remembers the very last thing she'd seen before hitting the water. _Kasumimaru should be here somewhere._ Looking along the walkways, Nintai takes a right and starts moving. Everything around her is silent as the early morning light begins to reach over the wooden fences in the gardens. _This can't be the castle, can it?_ Lost on where she is, Nintai starts walking the halls.

"Nintai!"

Nami rushes to her from down the hall. Behind her is Lee, keeping up with ease. Bright smiles grace both of their faces as they tackle Nintai. Keeping herself standing, but just barely, Nintai holds onto both of them, a smile forming on her face. The feeling of her facial muscles moving from joy has become a natural feeling.

"We're so glad you're awake! Sayori hasn't left that room for days," Lee pouts.

Opening her mouth, all that comes from Nintai's throat is silence. Grasping at her neck in panic, the two girls in front of her try to explain at once, overwhelming her ears with noise as their voices echo painfully. _What the heck!?_

"That's enough, you two!"

Nintai, eyes brimming, looks behind her to see a man with jet black hair walking toward them. His face is aged, but not so much that he actually looks old. The usual smile spreads across his face as his bright sapphire eyes meet hers. Wearing a gray suit and tie, his appearance is familiar and welcome. _Dad._

"How's my little ninja doing?"

He stops in front of her and pats her on the head, his body bracing for an assault, which is usually what happens right about now. All she does is stand there, eyes about to overflow, and wish she knew what had happened after jumping. Another thing she wants to know is why her voice isn't working.

"We were trying to explain why her voice isn't working," Lee pouts.

"Rather inefficiently, it seems," her dad mumbles.

Nintai tugs on her dad's sleeve and points at her throat. She then puts up her hands in a questioning gesture. Smiling at her, he turns to Nami and Lee.

"Would you two go find that notepad I brought over last week? It should be in her room, somewhere."

Nodding, the girls start walking away. Nintai's father motions for her to sit with him and the two watch the blue sky as a few clouds lazily pass overhead. The silence drags on for quite a while as they wait for the two girls to come back. Noticing a tapping sound as her mind wanders, Nintai thinks about how annoying her father's foot tapping used to be to her. That annoyance is gone, amazingly.

"For the love of-! How long does it take to find a notepad?"

Nintai bites her lip to hold back a giggle. _You're one to talk._ Thinking back to her early childhood, Nintai recalls hiding her father's pens and notepads all around the house, just to mess with him. She'd just sit on the couch, watching him rush back and forth trying to find them before taking pity and sneaking them back into his bag.

Pulling at his sleeve to gain his attention, she twirls her hand in a 'go on' gesture, hoping to get everything going. The other two were taking forever to find a simple pencil and paper.

Sighing to himself, her father launches his story. "You remember your aunt, right?"

Nodding, Nintai thinks back to her dream. _She kidnapped me and left me to die. Can't believe I actually forced that memory to change._

"Well, she managed to escape her cell at the correctional facility." Nintai's breath catches in her throat. "Thanks to that, the police have us here for safety precautions. I'm not necessary, of course, but they wanted to play it safe. Anyways, we're stuck here until further notice."

Shrugging to her, Nintai's father stares off into the distance through the overgrown and unkempt garden. _But, why?_ Unable to voice her concerns and questions, Nintai sits in a void of complication and discomfort. Her earlier worries about the bodyguards, ninja, princess, and anything having to do with them has disappeared in the void around her.

"Found it!"

Turning to Lee, Nintai's father smiles and holds out his hand. A satisfying smack sounds around them as she slaps it into his hand, her face beaming with pride at having found the notepad and pencil. Having dealt with pain from his daughter for several years, the sting doesn't even register. He then holds the paper and pencil out for his daughter. Immediately she takes the items and scribbles her question onto it.

"Ah, well… I'm not too sure why she's broken out. It could be relapse from the treatment options that had been attempted. Regardless of why, though, we're definitely prime targets. I don't know where it is you and your friends have been, but it was pure bad luck that you guys came back when you did. The four of you need to try and disappear again."

"Easier said than done," comes a familiar voice from a familiar spot.

Around her neck, the blue pendant glows spectacularly, giving off dust-like particles that collect in front of the two. The sound isn't that of the tactician that had formerly been a part of the pendant, but that of a girl, and Nintai smiles as she places the voice to a face. _Hantai._

Smiling at the form in front of her as the girl takes shape from the dust, the ruby eyes staring out of shades of blue, Nintai takes notice of the features. Her skin, hair and even what would be the whites of her eyes are all differing shades of blue. The body is a single, smooth form, as if she was wearing an elastic body suit.

"Hello, Nintai," she says brightly.

"The subconscious has been rather boring without you around. What took you so long to wake up?" Nintai shrugs. "Oh, come on! I let you name me! The least you could do is answer me."

Nintai hangs her head and points at her neck, shaking her head. Understanding the meaning, Hantai instead looks to Nintai's father, her eyebrow, a bright sky blue, raised in question. He shrugs, unable to answer the unspoken question.

Lee, standing off to the side, speaks up, for him. "It's because of the screaming. Her voice is pretty much gone, so she won't be able to talk for quite a while."

Looking at her friend, pale, Nintai is lost on what she could… or would say. Caught up in her own thoughts, Nintai barely registers the conversation as it moves on to the explanation of her nonexistent voice. The only thing she catches is that her body sustained all her injuries from battles and her jump all at once when she came back. _My god… What the hell?_

After staring at the ground in shock and disbelief for several minutes, Nintai finally turns her attention to Hantai. Looking at the paper on her lap, she starts scribbling something and shows it to the floating apparition.

"Hmmm… Not a bad idea. But that thing may need some time to recharge…" Hantai stares at Nintai for a few seconds, trying to keep herself from smiling.

Lee looks over Nintai's shoulder and sees the question that had been written on the paper. Covering her mouth, she stifles her giggles as best she can. Nintai's father had looked at the question as well, but he didn't see anything funny about it. To him, it seemed like a perfectly natural question.

A few minutes later, after Hantai explains why everyone had returned to the present, Nami and Sayori had joined the group.

"Nintai!"

Sayori's immediate reaction was to hug her friend and not let go. Indulging her friend, Nintai just sat on the walkway waiting for Sayori to let go; a surprise to her father, not so much the other two. Hantai gave one final giggle while staring at the paper in her physical friends lap and disappeared back into the blue pendant. The group left behind decides to get up and move inside.

"So, Nintai," Nami starts off, "When do you think you'll be able to tell Daddy about ninja boy."

The man stiffens and stares at his daughter, narrowing his eyes. Nintai glares at her former babysitter, then slides her finger across her throat. _You are so dead._ The paper and pencil are off to one side. Written on it is the same question the girls have been laughing at, and have started giggling about all over again a little way away.

In dark graphite from pressure are the words 'What if we go back through the green pendant?'


End file.
